Three Words that Halted the World
by Rayleighn
Summary: Set in The Path We Walk verse, Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **One**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells and Cleena, and another plot ruining pairings  
**Summary: **Set in _The Path We Walk___verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI, only extending to Heathers existence in this bit), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.

The month they spent chasing the necklace was fantastic, and Helena wouldn't change it for the world, but when they finally landed on solid ground again, she would have been a fool to not realize that one utterance, followed by amazingly satisfying sex, did not a relationship make.

This night however, found Helena alone, curled up on the couch in the bed and breakfast, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire propped open, before a crackling fire. Myka and Pete left early to go hunt down the stake that Yael used to murder Sisera, which had been racking havoc all through the Middle East. Artie had the suspicion that it was prolonging the war between the rest of the world and the Middle East, and as such was tucked away in the warehouse. Steve was on vacation, visiting his mother, Claudia was working on some new gadget that she refused to show H.G. until it was complete and Leena was in the kitchen baking something that was wafting into the living room, tickling Helena's nose with the scent of warm chocolate cookies. And while by technicality Leena was there with her, they had managed to spend the whole day without so much as a word passing between them, each of them absorbed in their own plane of existence.

When the clock hanging over the fireplace chimed eleven, Helena gave up the thought of Myka and Pete returning tonight, or even seeing Claudia and Artie. Pushing herself out of small dent she had made in the couch from not moving for hours, Helena rolled her neck, listening to the satisfying pops and cracks as everything settled back into place. Padding into the kitchen where Leena was sitting at the small table, a steaming cup of liquid cupped in her hands, Helena smiled at the younger woman. "Dinner?" She inquired sleepily.

"I didn't make anything. I am sorry Helena." Leena said, staring into her tea.

Helena dismissed the sorry with a flick of her wrist. "Not to worry." Opening the refrigerator door, her eyes danced from one container to another, until she found what she was looking for. Opening the small Tupperware container with a bright purple lid, victory played across Helena's face. That was one upside of Pete being gone, leftovers survived well into the following day, if not longer, and Helena was thankful she was getting the last little bit of the lasagna Leena had made the night before. After warming the delectable bit of pasta, cheese, and tomato sauce, Helena sat down across from Leena, making sounds that should be reserved for sex at the taste of the pasta. "I didn't think it was possible for this to become any more delectable than it was last night, but I simply must tell you Leena, this is… orgasmic." A small smile cracked the other woman's face, and Helena put her fork down, and looked at the woman across from her, an eye brow raised in question. "This is simply not like you, normally you burst at the showering of praise you get for your delectable cooking, but tonight all you offer is a small smile. What is wrong love?" Leena looked up, eyes meeting Helena's, and the deep sorrow brimming at edges stole Helena's breath away. "Love?"

Leena's fingers danced over the rim of her cup, before whispering an answer that Helena would have completely missed had she not been looking right at the younger woman's face. As it was, Helena couldn't make out anything that was said, but it pulled at her heart to ask the woman to repeat something that was obviously weighing so heavy on her that she could only whisper it. After long moments passed between them, Leena must have realized that Helena hadn't heard her and she spoke up this time. "I have been having visions, of Claudia playing with a baby."

Helena's eye raised, she was thoroughly puzzled by why this was causing distress to the woman across from her. After all, would having a child with Claudia not be something she would want eventually? "I have to admit I am dreadfully puzzled by this causing you distress, do you not wish to have a family with Ms. Donovan?"

Leena looked at the ceiling, tears tracing rugged paths down her face. "The exact opposite, I want children with her so badly. But the child in my vision is not ours, or at the very least not mine." After a pause, that left Helena swimming a sea of emotion she had no idea how to begin to traverse, Leena broke the silence again. "I think she is going to leave me." With that, the tears that were squeezing themselves out, bit by bit before, released as if a dam had been removed. Helena pushed her chair back and went and wrapped the young woman in a warm hug, trying to sooth the pain and fear.

"Not to make light of the situation at hand love, but unless I missed significantly more in the world of medical advances than I previously thought, would it not be impossible for the child to be genetically both of yours?" Helena asked, holding the young woman's shaking body. Leena was nodding and shaking her head into Helena's shoulder all at once, as if she couldn't decide now if indeed the Victorian woman was correct. "Shh, I am sure it's not as terrible as you think honey." Helena said, giving up, at least for the moment of getting an answer from the younger woman, as she was now genuinely curious.

By the time the front door opened and Claudia and Artie came in, Leena had abandoned her chair and was now curled up in Helena's lap, her breathing finally starting to even out from the sobs that had wracked her body for so long, tea and lasagna long since forgotten on the table. Claudia came around the corner, and with a stern look from H.G. turned right around, stopped Artie from going into the kitchen, and all but stomped up to her room. Hearing the door close upstairs just shy of being slammed, Leena pulled her head up from where it was resting on Helena's shoulder. "I am so sorry Helena." The young woman said, apology after apology spilling from her lips as she pulled herself out of Helena's embrace and went to washing their forgotten dishes.

"Hey, you're fine." Helena said standing up, rather stiffly and putting her hand on Leena's arm to stop her nervous motions. "Leena, darling, look at me." Leena finally stopped, and looked at Helena as requested. Helena stood on her tip toes and placed a kiss to Leena's forehead. "I am sure Claudia has no intention if leaving you darling, but perhaps you need to talk to her about your fears." Leena nodded, turning back to the dishes, dismissing Helena of her duties of taking care of the woman. Helena was almost out of the kitchen before she tossed over her shoulder, "You owe me a conversation about medical advances I believe however."

Leena smiled, and even laughed a bit for the first time that night, as Helena retreated to her own room, Harry Potter in hand.


	2. Chapter 2

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **Two**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells and Cleena, and other plot ruining pairings  
**Summary: **Set in _The Path We Walk_verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI, only extending to Heathers existence in this bit), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors Note: **I am just going to go ahead and apologize for the amount of angst that is about to occur right now.

* * *

Swaying back and forth, listening to the creak of the old wood and chains, Helena sat in deep thought on the back swing, nursing a cup of tea, days later. Myka and Pete were still away, apparently the stake was more elusive than they had originally thought. As such, Artie was still hiding in the warehouse, trying to help them get the damn thing back. Claudia and Leena were driving her bat shit crazy with the tension neither of them were willing to break. So sitting on the swing, nursing her cup of tea, while pondering her thoughts seemed the sanest thing to do.

Her thoughts were jumping from one place to another so fast that it should have been giving her whiplash.

* * *

_After landing in Auckland and checking into their hotel room, Helena was standing in the bathroom door way, only in frilly black boy shorts and a black and red lacy bra. _

"_Shower with me?"_

_Myka had ran her tongue over her lips – in what Helena assumed was an involuntary motion – before responding with a head shake. "I think I am just going to go to sleep."_

_Helena had nodded, trying to hide her sorrow from the rejection but took a shower by herself regardless. The warm water did nothing to chase the chill that settled into the pit of her stomach. Less than a week had passed since they had sex, and already Myka was pushing away. Hanging her head, her forehead pushed to the cold tiling of the bathroom, Helena felt a few tears fall before she straightened her spine, and told herself that everything would work out…It had to._

_Slipping into the bed behind Myka, the cold feeling grew when she went to wrap her body around Myka's and the younger woman turned to lay on her back._

* * *

"_Shall we order celebratory wine?" Helena asked, watching Myka pack the artifact under many layers of clothing. _

_Myka had smirked, but shook her head. "We have to leave early in the morning. Wine makes me sleepy."_

_Helena raised an eyebrow then and sauntered over to Myka, pulling the taller woman close. "Celebratory sex?"_

_Myka shook her head harder, before pushing out of Helena's arms. "I am going to go take a shower."_

_Helena nodded dejectedly, before sinking into an oversized chair in the corner of their room. That chair was where she woke up the following morning. She didn't know what hurt worse, her neck from sleeping at an odd angel all night, or the fact that Myka had left her sleeping in the chair._

* * *

"Such a pleasant day for tea."

Helena blinked a few times, attempting to clear her head of the painful memories, memories she couldn't do anything about with Myka somewhere in the Middle East. The swing shifted as Heather sat down beside Helena, her own cup of tea in hand. "It is." Helena whispered back after a few moments.

"We haven't spoken since you returned from retrieving that necklace and they named me a reagent." Heather commented, taking a sip of her steaming tea.

Helena nodded, mimicking other woman and sipping on her own tea. "I have missed our conversations immensely."

It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that something was eating away at Helena, but had Heather chosen to, she was sure she could have been a rocket scientist, she just preferred people over cold metal. Instead of calling Helena on it, however, she sat in silence, waiting for the other woman to talk as they swayed on the swing. Heather watching carefully as Helena opened her mouth to start speaking and then as if she had thought better of speaking, closed it again. After watching the internal battle for a few more minutes, Heather decided whatever was bothering the other woman was not something she really wanted to talk about yet. "What is all the tension in the house about?"

Helena snorted, thankful for the rerouting of the conversation. "Leena and Claudia are, "fighting"."

"And which is which?" Heather asked, still so lost in the new world she had been planted in.

"It seems to have escaped me that you have not been formally introduced to everyone. Claudia is the young woman with red hair, and an exceeding amount of energy. Leena is the black woman who is the exact opposite, tranquil and warm." Helena explained, a smile cracking her face. Despite all its flaws, her new family brought a smile to her face.

"I see…" Heather's nails tapped at the cup in her hand. "And what are they fighting about?"

"Leena has a touch of psychic powers. She receives visions, can see auras, and such. Recently she has been seeing Claudia playing with a baby, which she has convinced herself is not in any way related to her in their relationship, and she is currently allowing the idea to fester that Claudia is going to leave her for another. Claudia has not been allowed into this inner circle of thought by Leena and the bloody tension between the two of them is absurd." Helena said with a sigh, recalling the night Leena let her in on the thoughts, and the perfectly good white shirt she had been wearing that was completely ruined by mascara stains now.

"I would be lying if I didn't say I was impressed. It takes great skill to actively involve someone in a fight that they don't even have an inkling of what it is about." Heather admitted. "So Helena, I feel like you have some things to tell me, seeing as I have a nagging suspicion that in all the phone calls we shared over the month details were left out. You know, with me not being privy to such details at the time."

Helena placed her tea on the arm rest and turned in her seat and stuck her hand out for Heather to shake. "Pleasure to meet you Ms. Kessler, I am H.G. Wells, world famous author, who was bronzed in 1900. There was also this spout where I tried to end the world, which is responsible for the reagents hiring you at all I believe. I spent a year in a holographic form, post trying to end the world, and just recently have been allowed to resume my duties as an agent, under carful supervision."

Heather's jaw went slack. "But… but… H.G. Wells, is dead. And a man. But mostly dead."

"Nonsense dear, I was bronzed after my daughter was murdered and I requested it in a brief moment of not well thought out sanity. As for the man portion, that was my brother who posed as me, Charles. Imagine, how scandalous, a woman writing science fiction, an unmarried mother at that, in the 1800's." Helena said before adding, "And stuttering over my existence is quiet unbecoming."

Heather blinked, hard. "Sorry." She finally muttered as her brain started to process all this new information.

Helena flicked her wrist, as if flicking the whole thing away. "You have so much to learn yet."

"Apparently." Heather muttered, taking a sizable sip of her tea.

"What brings you here?" Helena asked, as if it just became obvious to her that it was strange for Heather to just show up.

"After much debating, the reagents had decided I should live here. Ease of access to me for you and rest of the agents, and I agreed." Heather explained. "And, we hadn't spoken since you and Agent Bering gave me the tour of the warehouse, and that was almost two weeks ago. I was starting to worry."

Helena took a sip of her tea, effectively ending the conversation for the time being. Both women sat in a comfortable silence, swaying on the swing, pondering everything from the current state of their lives to what made the universe work and back. Had the sound of a shattering plate coming from the kitchen not stirred them from their thoughts, they probably could have sat in the silent company well into the night. But the plate shattering did happen, and both women practically leapt off the swing to race into the kitchen, only to see Claudia standing over a shattered plate, with Mrs. Fredrick looking at her, amusement, a rare emotion, on the much older woman's face.

"How many times do I have to tell you dude, that is not cool Mrs. F!" Claudia all but shouted, crouching down to clean up the shattered plate.

Heather leaned into Helena's side. "What is she talking about?" Was whispered into her ear, breath moving along the folds of Helena's ear, causing a small shudder to occur. How much longer could she go without Myka reciprocating her love, if Heather's innocent whisper was sending chills down her spine?

Shaking her head slightly to try to clear her thoughts, Helena leaned over to repay the favor. "Mrs. Fredrick has the habit of just appearing and disappearing. I think she has an artifact." Helena whispered back, watching the same shiver she had experienced work its way through Heather's body.

"I heard that Ms. Wells. I do not have an artifact. It is just a skill." There was no room for questioning in the statements, and Helena straightened her spine, properly chastised.

"Artie is in the warehouse." Claudia said, still pushing bits of the plate together on the floor.

"I am quite aware of this Ms. Donovan. I was here to speak with Ms. Wells as it were."

Claudia lost most of the tension that was apparent. The thing about Mrs. F, was when she showed up it was almost never a good thing. As such, everyone had this immediate reaction if she just showed up and agents were still out trying to locate some artifact, and that reaction was to tense up and prepare as well as you could for news of capture or injury.

All the tension that left Claudia immediately seeped into Helena. The last time Mrs. F saw to her personally, she was left to be a hologram. Leaning over to Heather, she whispered, "Wish me luck."

Heather's hand trailed down Helena's arm, trying to reassure the woman. After all, it would be incredibly stupid to bring Heather on to take care of Helena's rather fragile psyche only to send her to some form of prison as Heather was moving in.

"Is your room sufficient?" It was prosed as a question but Helena knew better. She could have had underwear strewn all over her room and a naked woman in her bed, and Mrs. F would still insist that they speak in her room.

"Of course." Helena answered, following the woman up to her room, immensely thankful that neither a naked woman nor underwear were present in her room.

Sitting as eloquently as possible on the bed, Helena waited for Mrs. Fredrick to say whatever she had to say, knowing that any attempt to probe the woman for information would just prolong the conversation. "How are you doing?"

Had Helena not trained herself years ago to hide behind masks of emotions, her eyes would have bulged out of her face with disbelief. "Well, thank you…" She answered hesitantly.

"Is the concept of Dr. Kessler living her satisfactory for you?" Helena nodded slowly, still thrown by the conversation, her mind racing. Did they really think she was so unstable that something as simple moving another person into the B and B might throw her? "Wonderful. I hope she helps bring you back to the wondrous woman you once were Ms. Wells." And with that, Mrs. Fredrick turned and left Helena sitting on her bed, dumb struck.

By the time she managed to pull herself from her room and go back downstairs, she was meet with Heather standing at the foot of the stairs, her finger placed to her lips. Helena raised her eyebrow, finding the concept of Heather ease dropping incredibly amusing. Straining to listen, never the less, she caught snippets of the conversation she told Leena to have with Claudia days ago. When the voices finally stopped, Heather deemed it safe sneak back into the kitchen, with Helena in tow. Standing in the middle of the kitchen, Claudia held Leena, whispering reassurances that she had no intention to leave any time soon, while pressing soft kisses to her forehead.

Helena's heart tugged, she was thrilled they finally talked after three days of tension, but she wanted that connection so badly, and taste Myka gave her was enough to leave her hungry for it but not enough to even begin to take the edge off. Walking past the tow, Helena and Heather retreated to the swing on the back porch and to their now very cold tea.

"Are you sure you don't want to talk about anything?" Heather asked after they settled back into their seats.

For the first time in a long time, Helena shrugged. "There are things I should talk to you about, but I don't even know where to start."

"I find the beginning is a good place." Heather said with a chuckle.

"I suppose I can skip most of that, since you were part of that." Helena said, struggling to find the words she wanted to say next, her fingers playing with her tea cup.

"Why don't you say it anyway, just give yourself a sound starting point." Heather suggested, seeing the struggle on the other woman's face.

Helena nodded slowly. "You told Myka to make a choice, but you were wearing the bracelet so it compelled her to make that choice or die. She chose to love me, at least in that moment." Helena finished with a dry laugh, which contained everything that was the opposite of amusement.

"What do you mean, in that moment?"

"Well, we had amazing sex, and she told me she didn't regret it, but then when I tried to make any form of advance after we left Las Vegas, she shut me down completely. She let me sleep in a chair one night instead of waking me to come sleep in the bed with her." Helena said, her hand moving from the tea cup to her hair, spinning it around her finger. "I am driving myself crazy."

Heather took Helena's other hand in her own, rubbing her thumb over the back. "Perhaps she needs time to adjust?"

Helena shook her head. "The morning after, she seemed so happy to be with me, and then everything just fell apart, and I am afraid that I am going to lose my sanity again trying to figure this all out."

"I won't let that happen." Heather promised, pulling the smaller woman close to her, wrapping her arm around the woman, who was so obviously falling apart at the seams. "Do you know when Myka should be back?"

Helena shook her head, laying it on Heather's shoulder. "Was supposed to be an easy grab, but she's been gone for almost four days now."

"You have had no time to talk to her at all then?"

Helena shook her head again, content to stay curled up next to Heather. The warmth of another person holding her, soothing some of her hunger already. Heather made a noise that indicated she was deep in thought, but left the conversation where it was, content to just hold the smaller woman for now.

They jolted awake at the barks of Trailer. The sun had set some time ago, and either Leena or Claudia must have come out and taken their tea cups and place a blanket across them while they slept. Struggling to shake off sleep, they were both attempting to move from the swing when Myka closed the screen door and stared right at them both, confusion and the hints of heart break evident in her eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **Three**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, Heather/Catherine (Kind of sorta, just roll with it people), and a few others yet to be discussed.  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors Note: **Pardon the detour we are about to take, I promise we will return to our regularly scheduled ship unharmed. Well, relatively unharmed that is. Buckle up darlings.

* * *

The stared at each other. Myka stared at Heather and Helena on the swing with a look that firmly belonged in the category of, if looks could kill. Helena stared back, her mouth attempting to find words to put Myka at ease but coming up empty. And Heather, poor Heather, caught in the middle of this mess, was sitting between the two women, pulling the blanket closer as if it would be some magical defense from the wrath that was about to rain down around her.

"Myka, darling…" Helena squeezed out, fear tightening around her heart. Fear that the innocent act of falling asleep, buried into Heather's side had eroded any progress in her and Myka's relationship. Fear that this was just another tally in the column of ways she had disappointed Myka. Fear that, once again, the person she loved was being ripped away from her, and she was powerless.

"I can't keep doing this Helena." Myka said, her voice quivering with emotion she was fighting to contain. "I can't keep thinking that I love you and then you do something like," her hands went out to gesture to the current situation.

"Pray tell, what do you suppose has happened here Myka?" Helena spat back. She was quickly tiring of this game where she didn't know where their relationship stood. They hadn't talked about their relationship, and now she was standing in front of her, accusing her of being unfaithful. As quickly as the fear had gripped her earlier, it was replaced with anger now. Anger that burned white hot at the concept that she was the one in the wrong here. Anger that ate away any of the fear that she was the disappointment.

"Obviously you were sleeping with her out here." Myka answered, the first tear working its way out of the corner of her eye.

"That's all that happened, I promise Myka. We were talking, and must have fallen asleep while we sat here." Heather tried to explain, but Myka was having none of it.

"Oh that's all." She cut her eyes at the auburn haired woman, tears falling at regular intervals. "Then I must be irrational to be concerned my girlfriend is falling asleep with other women."

Helena's mouth opened, and she mimicked a fish out of water for a moment, before quickly slamming her mask of emotions back in place. "I'm your girlfriend now? You mean after pushing me away for a month, never speaking about our relationship after that one night, you have decided that I am your girlfriend?" Helena said in a rush.

Myka's answer was a shrug.

"No Myka. I can wait for you if that is what you require of me, but you want to speak of the things you cannot do anymore, what about the things I cannot do anymore? What of this game you have me playing were one moment you love me and the next you are accusing me atrocities of the likes of me having an affair? Do you think I enjoy this game? Pray tell." Helena was at her bursting point, her voice getting louder with each sentence.

"I never meant-"

"No of course not. You are sweet Myka, you have no ill intentions, but you are playing with my heart in dangerous ways." Helena said cutting her off. And with that Helena was done, she couldn't handle any more, and she stood up, throwing her side of the blanket at Heather, and pushed past Myka to retreat into the house, and into the crowd of the other residents.

"Dude, what's going on?" Claudia asked, concern etched all over her face.

Helena flicked her wrist, attempting to brush off the question. She thought she had succeeded until Pete grabbed her bicep and whipped her around to face him. "What did you do to her?"

Without a second thought, Helena slammed the heel of her palm into Pete's nose, causing blood to pour out and a shriek of pain. He let go of her arm, but not before she heard him say, "I always knew we couldn't trust her."

"Dude, you can't just hit Pete!" Claudia yelled, betrayal evident in her voice.

Helena didn't care anymore, she was done. Completely and utterly done. She kept walking, ignoring the shouts of the people she considered family, and slammed the front door behind her.

It became clear to Helena she did not think this plan out very well. The bed and breakfast was in the middle of nowhere to begin with, and walking made that all the more obvious. Glancing at her watch, she realized it was just after eight, and it dawned on her that it was a rather foolish thing to do; hit Pete and then just walk out, but she didn't care when she did it. And if there was anything Helena was, it was proud, and that particular feature carried her forward, on an unknown quest, and further away from the people she should go apologize to. Stumbling over the dark road, her mind wandered, and when she finally gave up it was almost eleven o'clock. Her mind had wandered through every memory she had with Myka, from the first time they met, to saving her life with the grappler, to the betrayal in Yellowstone, to her redemption while she was a hologram, Myka almost dying in the chair in Hong Kong, being forced to avoid her for months because of the astrolabe, to that night they had sex, and the month that followed. Then once her mind had decided that was not painful enough, it wandered through the memories of Christina, of the day she died, and the months that followed that. Helena was completely and utterly broken, and she almost found it funny that no one thought she was worth saving. She knew if they did, they would have found her by now, after all she had followed the road from the bed and breakfast to Univille. But then, could she blame them, she had just broken Pete's nose without a second thought, she mused as she sunk to her knees in the grass on the side of the road, tears streaming down her face. She was broken, everyone had thought she was fixed, hell she had even bought into the idea that she had reclaimed her sanity, but it was obvious now that she hadn't. The smallest fight with Myka and she was systematically destroying everyone and everything around her. Falling on her back, the slightly damp grass soaking through her shirt she looked at the stars, tears blurring her vision, but had anyone asked, she wouldn't have been able to tell you if she was crying for her actions, for her relationship, or just self-pity.

* * *

She didn't know how long she laid in the grass, trying to piece her mind back together, but the first wisps of dawn were showing themselves on the horizon, when she heard a car door slam shut, followed by someone calling her name.

Sitting up slowly, her back stiff from the cold, damp ground, she saw Heather walking across the span of grass between her and the road. "Here love." She answered, her voice cracking. The people who had known her the longest, at least in this time period, didn't find her, but Heather did.

Moving with more purpose now, Heather made quick work of getting to Helena before sinking to her knees and pulling her into the tightest hug she could manage. "Are you okay?"

Helena nodded, laughing a bit. "As okay as I can be."

Heather pulled the other woman up off the ground, and forced her to move towards the black SUV parked on the side of the road. "You can't do this every time things get hard. Ending the world and or running away are not viable options for dealing with your emotions Helena."

Helena nodded, before realizing in darkness of dawn Heather probably wouldn't see it while they were walking. "I know."

"Then why did you do it?" Heather asked, as they reached the SUV. It was clear she didn't expect an answer when she slammed the door closed after Helena was seated. After Heather started the car Helena noticed she wasn't turning around to take her back to the B and B.

"Where are we going?"

"Breakfast, in this tiny town that somehow sustains you all. It's really not a good idea for you to go home quiet yet. Pete is still rather, upset is really not a strong enough word here, about you breaking his nose." Heather said, her face screaming imagine that.

Helena ducked her head a bit. The night had done nothing if not hammered home how wrong she reacted, but her pride kept her from walking home. Not to say she wouldn't have done so, had Heather not shown up, but she was still clinging to her pride. "I suppose Myka is even more furious with me than she was when she got home."

"Correct assumption. You broke her partner's nose… Although, she's quiet furious with me as well, and me coming to your rescue this morning did not help my status at all." Heather said.

* * *

They ate breakfast in silence, Heather unwilling to try to push Helena into talking and Helena unwilling to talk. As such the drive back home wasn't very pleasant, the car was tense, but Heather knew better then to push Helena.

Helena walked through the front door with every intention sneaking upstairs to her room without talking to anyone but her plan was thwarted almost immediately. As she took the first step, Claudia came racing down the stairs and stood in front of her, arms crossed. "You owe Pete an apology."

"I do not apologize for things I am not sorry for doing Ms. Donovan, and you are well aware of this." Helena said, the dare hanging unsaid.

"I trusted you HG." Claudia said, the betrayal that showed up the night before rearing its ugly head now.

Despite wanting to push past Claudia and hide in her room like the petulant child she was behaving like, Helena sighed. "This has nothing to do with you Claudia. Mr. Latimer should have known better then to grab me, he has witnessed me in hand to hand combat before."

"You are both my family dude, you can't just go around hating each other and beating the shit out of each other when you disagree." Claudia whined back at the older woman.

Helena brought her fingers up to rub the bridge of her nose. "He was angry because he thought I had betrayed Myka. I was angry because Myka has been playing games with me. Now if you would so kindly move out of my way."

Claudia pushed herself against the wall, clearly out of her league with what was going on, and watched Helena move up the stairs and lock herself in her room. Turning her attention to Heather, who was still standing in the door way, Claudia narrowed her eyes. "I am not your biggest fan right now."

Heather nodded, acknowledging that the task of fitting in with this group of people just became harder because she went after Helena. Walking up stairs to her own rather empty room, her cell phone started playing "I Knew You Were Trouble" by Taylor Swift, much to her own embarrassment, but she couldn't find a better ring tone for Catherine Willows.

"Catherine." She answered, closing her own door behind her.

"I miss you."

Heather tilted her head back. "We have been over this. I am not interested in being your side meal Catherine. Besides, I have moved."

"Where?"

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because I can't."

"Please Heather, I miss you."

"Catherine. No." Heather said, as sternly as she could, before hanging up and tossing the phone on her bed carelessly.

* * *

Dinner later that night had been an event. Despite everyone harboring resentment for at least one other person at the table, no one could resist the smell of Leena's cooking for long, and everyone sat down to eat.

"I am sorry I broke your nose Pete." Helena murmured half way through dinner.

Everyone stopped moving. Helena apologized. A nuke could have gone off outside of their window and everyone would have stayed sitting completely still, staring at Helena as if she had spontaneously grown a second head.

"Thanks HG." He finally said, unsure how he was supposed to treat the apology.

Heather looked back and forth between the two, watching Helena's calculated moves like she would watch a chess match. Watching Helena set up a master trap that she was sure Pete would fall right into.

"Helena I am taking you off active duty. You too Myka." Artie said, breaking the fragile peace into a thousand pieces.

Both women dropped their forks, staring at Artie like he had lost his ever loving mind. "But you can't!" "There is no feasible reason to do that!" They both yelled.

"Enough. You both need to work out what ever needs to be worked out. And I don't want to hear about it! Now eat." He barked, returning to his own food.

Heather watched the short man, who reminded her of Grissom. Only she imagined she would have immensely more fun poking at this man's sensibilities.

The rest of dinner was completed in silence. After which Heather went to sit out on the back porch, a cup of chamomile tea in her hands, sensing sleep was not going to come easily tonight. Helena sat down beside the other woman, back on the swing that started this whole mess. She was just about start talking when Steve came out and sat on the railing across from.

"Look, I don't know what is going on between you and Myka, but figure your crap out. I can only do so many missions with Pete before I am going to shoot myself from him trying so hard to make me feel comfortable around him." Steve said, staring Helena down.

Heather raised an eyebrow. "I seem to be lost again."

"I am gay. It makes Pete act weird. Not in like the homophobic type weird, but just," Steve shrugged, finding it impossible to find a way to describe Pete taking his shirt off in attempt to make Steve feel less awkward.

Helena snorted a bit. "Mr. Latimer at his finest."

"I am serious HG, don't mess this up." Steve said, looking at her seriously.

"I can only do so much Steve, Myka has to be willing to work too." Helena said, just as seriously.

Heather squeezed her hand. "How about we have a proper session in the morning?"

Helena nodded, and the three sat on the dark porch, oblivious to Myka standing around the corner, just out of eyesight, but able to hear everything.

* * *

Helena sat across from Heather in the kitchen, drawing invisible patterns on the table. Myka had left a few minutes before, saying she was going to the gym, and everyone else with the exception of Leena had went to the warehouse to work on something or another. Leena was currently on cloud nine, decorating Heather's room and setting it up so she could use that for meetings instead of the kitchen.

"Why did you apologize?"

Helena looked up at the question, but didn't answer.

"I can sit here just as long as you Helena. I have far more discipline then I think you realize." Heather said, the comforting friend that Helena had grown so fond of gone, and in her place a stern woman who didn't take no for an answer.

"It was the right thing to do." Helena finally answered, but her voice heightened at the end, just enough to make it sound almost like she was asking for Heather's approval.

"Really?" Heather asked, she heard that shift in the Englishwoman's voice and she was not buying it.

"No." Helena deadpanned.

"Then why?"

"Because it's what Myka would have asked me to do if she was talking to me." Helena finally admitted.

"So everything you do is to seek Myka's approval." It wasn't a question, and Helena knew it. Hearing the words stung. She never wanted to be that person. The person who's whole life revolved around the person they loved. She had spent years establishing a reputation for not being attached, and here she was now, doing things just because it was what Myka would expect. "When was your last relationship?"

That question caught Helena off guard. "I don't think I have ever had one." She admitted.

"You don't find that troubling?"

Helena scoffed. "You do?"

"Yes, I do."

Helena rolled her eyes, a product of spending time with Claudia. "I suppose it would be an issue."

"Do you think that part of your problem with Myka could stem from that?"

Helena looked at her like she had taken a particularly large sip of tea from Beatrix Potter's tea set. "How on earth?"

"You are not stupid Helena." Heather answered, unamused by Helena pretending to be far less intelligent than she truthfully was.

"No, I am not." Helena said, going back to drawing invisible patterns with her fingers. They sat in silence through Leena coming down for water and going back up to continue working on Heather's room, and well beyond. Neither woman showing any sign of giving an inch. It was a test of wills, the first to break would always be the weaker one, and neither wanted that title.

But Helena could only take it for so long. The years in bronze had whittled away her resolve to silence. "I am chasing something I have never experienced. It is as if I am a young woman attempting her first love all over again."

Heather smiled and nodded. "Has it occurred to you that perhaps you should look at other people for relationships? That Myka is just receiving all of your attention because she was there when you were released from the bronze, and she put faith in you?"

Helena shook her head. The thought of starting a relationship with anyone else hurt, and she didn't even know where to begin. Who else could she date? Who else would know her as fully as Myka did and not run away?

"I think we are done for now Helena." Heather said, interrupting the shorter woman's thoughts. "I think before you can love Myka, and expect her to return it, you need to go through your own, I would almost say, puberty.

Helena narrowed her eyes. "Are you suggesting that I am underdeveloped?"

Heather nodded solemnly. "In the world of relationships, yes. You developed in the Victorian era, an era notorious for how oppressive it was to women, something you have noted yourself. You need to explore outside of Myka."

Helena sighed before pushing away from the table and moving to the back yard. Walking through the trees gave her peace to her racing mind. Now Heather was suggesting she find someone else to love, and the only person even close to fitting the bill of someone worth her time, was Heather herself. Helena was teetering at the edge of insanity, and this was not helping.


	4. Chapter 4

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **Four**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, and the plot ruining ones that are hush hush  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors Note: **So I just wanted to take a quick moment to say thank you to everyone who has read this little angst filled drama so far. As I said in the last chapter, I do promise to return us to our regularly scheduled ship, but we are going to go on a little detour first. Also a quick heads up that posting may slow down considerably in the coming weeks (if the story isn't done by then) due to school starting up again, but I promise if it flows over into school time, I won't leave you hanging forever.  
**Authors Note 2 (The important one!): **It has been pointed out to me that I haven't explained what the italics really mean, so my general rule, if it's a bunch of crap in italics it is one of two things, a memory or a dream, and sometimes both. Single words are just words that are being emphasized. Also for those who are less familiar with the CSI verse, Lindsey is Catherine's daughter. I am sure I bring it up in the story but, just in case.

* * *

Heather turned around in her room, eyes absorbing everything Leena had done in the past five hours. "This is amazing Leena." She uttered, captivated by the room. It was as if Leena had reached into her brain and extracted the image of the bed room she had left in Las Vegas. "How on earth did you do all this yourself?" It was a fair question, the twin bed that she had slept on the night before had been replaced with a queen, cherry wood canopy bed, sheer red fabric hanging from the top, the matching dresser and vanity sitting across from the bed. In the corner of the room, furthest from the door, were two oversized chairs, angled so that they were facing each other. To top it all off, at the foot of the bed was a large black chest, fade marks where Heather's fingers had rested on it as it opened many times. "How did you get this from Las Vegas?"

Leena smiled, "Now, if I told you that all of my secrets would be out. I have to keep some mystery here." Her eyes sparkled with mirth.

"I feel like I should repay you in some way." Heather said sitting on the bed, a small sigh escaping from her lips as her hands slid over the soft dark red velvet comforter.

"I am sure I will need your ear at some point. It is nice not to be the one who gets to shoulder everyone's burdens now." It was evident to Heather that being the one who listened to everyone else for so long had taken a toll on Leena, and the words she spoke were not even close to vocalizing the truth of how relived she felt.

"Well, you know where to find me."

Leena nodded, a smile gracing her face. "You may regret that." Leena said cryptically before leaving.

Heather raised her eye brows, but shook her head, dismissing the odd statement for now. Instead she chose to lay on the bed, her auburn hair fanned out behind her, and just relax. She had been in the house for less than a week and already it was taking a toll. Sleep wrapped her in its loving arms before she had a chance to realize it had even slipped into the bed with her.

* * *

Her door creaking open, sunlight pouring onto her face woke her up the following morning. Stretching, Heather turned her face to the doorway to see Leena and Claudia, the smaller girl holding a tray of food. "We worried when you didn't come down for dinner or breakfast." Leena said, pushing the door open a bit further before taking the tray from Claudia and sitting it on Heather's lap.

"Well she did." Claudia commented.

"Claudia." Leena hissed.

"What? It's the truth." Claudia said, her arms crossing.

"This smells amazing." Heather said, pushing herself into a sitting position. "Thank you, once again."

Leena nodded, her eyes still cut towards Claudia. "Apologize."

Before Claudia could even start to protest, Heather put a hand on Leena's. "She will apologize when she thinks I have earned her respect. I am well versed in the passive aggressive acceptance test she is putting me through."

Claudia raised an eye brow. "That makes me sound like a child."

"Are you not behaving as one?" Heather commented, lifting the cup of coffee to her lips.

"Forget you." Claudia said, before turning around and leaving.

"I don't think you did yourself any favors." Leena commented.

Heather shrugged. "Lindsey was the same way for a long time…" She trailed off. Lindsey made her think of Catherine. Of the good times they had together, right up until Catherine decided she wanted to date some cop, but keep Heather on the side. Shaking her head, trying to shake the memory from haunting her anymore, Heather sipped on the coffee again.

"You look troubled." Leena said, watching the colors of Heather's aura shifting, black spanning its way through her predominantly red aura, but only for a moment, disappearing almost as soon as Leena caught sight of it.

"Just thoughts of things lost." Heather said, forking pancakes into her mouth. After chewing and sighing slightly, she looked at Leena seriously. "You are going to make me fat, your food, is amazing."

Leena beamed, laughter bubbling out. "Most of it is healthy too, so not too fat. Curvy perhaps. However, I need to go chastise my girlfriend for acting like a child." Leena said, leaving in search of Claudia.

Heather watched her leave before ripping into the food like a wild animal. She was ravenous now that her body realized she tried to skip two meals.

* * *

After dinner Heather found herself sitting on the back porch step, watching the sun set. The day had been peaceful, and the sunset was the perfect way to end it. The purple and pinks swirling in the clouds behind the trees was a magical sight, one that Heather quickly decided she was fond of. Leaning her head against the stair railing she sighed, her thoughts drifting from place to place, never lingering long enough for her to think about them too seriously. No drama, outside of Claudia's test during breakfast, she had a feeling these days would be slim in a place that worked with objects on a daily bases that could bend someone's will. Not realizing it, a small chuckle escaped, her life had come full circle. Working as a dominatrix her job was to care for people who either she or her girls bent to their will, and now she was caring for a whole new group of people who would experience the same thing from time to time, under much less pleasurable circumstances she was sure. Her eyes were getting heavy when she heard light footsteps followed by the screen door closing softly.

"Myka is arguing with Mrs. Fredrick." Helena said, sitting down beside Heather.

Heather rubbed her eyes, so much for a drama free day. "Do I dare ask about what?"

"Mrs. Fredrick instructed her to take this time to go visit her sister, or maybe her parents." Helena answered, shifting to mimic Heather's pose on the steps.

"I think I fail to see the problem."

Helena snorted, trying to contain her laugh. "To be bloody honest, I don't either."

Heather shook her head. That woman confused the living hell out of her and she didn't even know where to start to try to make it better. If Claudia was testing her, Myka wanted to throw her in an industrial meat grinder and play with the bits that were left. In that moment Heather vowed, that before the woman left, because it was inevitable she was going to take that vacation, she would get some answers out of her.

* * *

The following morning, Heather stood in the dining room, sipping her coffee when she heard a loud crash from the next room over. Putting her cup down quickly, she moved to the other room to see Myka, a frustrated expression plastered on her face, as she tried to carry one to many bags down the stairs. Heather bent down and picked up the heavier bag that had fallen down the stairs, shrugging it onto her shoulder. When Myka looked up from the bags that she had been rearranging to try to manage better, her expression turned to anger quickly. "I don't need _your_ help."

Heather raised an eyebrow. "I beg to differ. I believe you need it in far more ways than me just carrying your overly heavy bag." She said, shifting from foot to trying, trying to elevate the pain that was already starting her shoulder.

Finally reaching the bottom of the stairs and coming face to face with Heather, she responded, "And what is that supposed to mean?"

"It means, that I am a regent, and the therapist for every one of you, and while Helena has a need for me, I think the only person who needs me just as much is you, Ms. I-Will-Love-You-When-It-Is-Convenient-For-Me." Heather said, her eyes boring into Myka's. It was intended to incite a reaction, a calculated move on the chess board that was navigating Myka.

"You have no room to judge me. My reaction was because _you_ put me in that situation with an artifact." Myka answered, attempting to grab her bag, but she underestimated Heather's strength.

"You don't trust me?" Heather said, wrapping the strap around her hand, she knew if she let the bag go the conversation would be over.

"Would you trust you in my position?" Myka answered, some of her defenses crumbling, but not nearly enough for Heather to be happy.

"From what I understood, you forgive each other quiet regularly for what artifacts make you do."

"You _are not_ one of us." Myka said before ripping the bag away from her and slamming her defenses back into place, but she still didn't move away from Heather. "If you were, you would know better than to expect me to forgive you for this. You would know better than to ask for my trust. But I guess to some extent I have to trust you, I am leaving Helena to you on Mrs. Fredrick's orders."

"I won't hurt her Myka. Not like you did." Heather answered, steeled gaze meeting fire. Another calculated move, one that she knew would fester the whole time Myka was gone, which should be just long enough to make her realize she had royally fucked up.

With that Myka pushed past Heather rather violently, throwing Heather off balance and into the wall beside the stairs, and slammed the front door shut behind her.

Leena's door opened at the top of the stairs, allowing Claudia's voice to escape, begging, "Come on and come back to bed. Please."

"Is everything okay?" Leena asked stepping out of the room and fumbling with her robe.

Heather nodded, righting herself. "Myka was just leaving. She had her hands full."

Leena eyed her for a moment, but disappeared back into the room when Claudia pulled her back in, closing the door behind them, leaving Heather to finish her coffee and plot her next move.


	5. Chapter 5

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **Five**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, and the plot ruining ones that are hush hush  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.

* * *

Heather was curled up on the couch, waiting for Helena to come downstairs. The house was empty save for Helena, Leena and herself, and Heather would have been a liar if she said it wasn't nice. Artie and Pete left retrieve Tolkien's original copies of _The Lord of the Rings_ from Peter Jackson two days ago, and according to Leena, they had so far been the complete opposite of successful. Claudia, despite begging to go tackle Peter Jackson, left that morning with Steve to hunt down a mask with healing properties, rumored to be in Madagascar.

Having Pete out of the house was probably the biggest relief to Heather. He was a man child on the best of days and his constant joking and just generally childlike attitude was wearing on Heather's nerves quickly. It probably didn't help that to him it was all her fault Myka left him once again, even if it was just a vacation. He hadn't told her as much, but Heather wasn't completely against using the files her superiors had given her.

On the same had though, she would be lying if she didn't admit missing Artie a bit. Over the past week it had become a game, between Helena and herself, of who could get the older man to blush more with their dinner conversation. The night before the two men left was by far the best round of the game so far.

* * *

"_You know, it's not fair that I'm not going with you guys." Claudia had whined. _

"_You are the senior agent Claudia, I can't have both of you on one case with Myka gone." Artie responded._

"_Fiiiiine." Claudia answered, still peeved._

"_I know I am going to regret this. I don't think I grasp what the big deal is Ms. Donovan." Helena said at last after listening to the argument. _

_Heather covered her mouth to keep from spitting her food everywhere at the face that Claudia gave Helena. _

"_You're kidding." Claudia said after a moment, nodding her head furiously, trying to reassure herself._

_Helena shook her head slowly._

"_Oh. My. God. Dude, Lord of the Rings is like the best thing since sliced bread. It's the geek's paradise. How have you not read or watched them yet?!"_

_Helena raised her eyebrow. "I have just finished the Harry Potter series. Do you have the books—"_

"_Really? Is that even a question?" Claudia said, in one swift motion getting up and racing up the stairs to retrieve the books. Before conversation could resume, she had raced back down the stairs and dropped the three rather large books into Helena's lap. "I don't want to talk to you till you have at least read The Fellowship of the Ring."_

_Helena nodded, her fingers tracing the patterns on the cover sitting in her lap. _

_Heather, having finally regained her composure, removed her hand. "We will watch the movies soon. After all, I need to introduce you to the magic that is Liv Tyler and Cate Blanchett playing elvish women."_

_Artie coughed, sensing this conversation was heading down the road he was becoming all too familiar with - Helena and Heather playing whose sexual exploits were grander. _

"_Oh, Artie, you and your delicate sensibilities." Heather teased, pretending to drop the conversation._

_Dinner continued on silently until Helena pulled herself out of the book, of which she had impressively already read about a hundred pages of. "This is fantastic." She said, closing the book and turning her attention to the game that was about to begin. "You simply must tell me what is so magical about them Heather."_

_Heather smiled, game on. "Oh, it really all comes down to the wardrobe. Liv Tyler's character is such a bad ass, and my god, she is so fuckable while being a bad ass." Heather said, mock fanning herself._

"_I can't imagine she is better than the women I wooed." Helena said, an eye brow raised._

"_Maybe we should just take a visual test." Heather said, pulling her phone out and quickly pulling up a few stills of Liv Tyler as Arwen. Helena's tongue dragged over her lips. "You know I had the pleasure to get her naked in my bed once."_

_Helena raised an eye brow. "Are we boasting?"_

_Pete, despite being less than thrilled with Heather's existence, was hanging off her every word. Artie on the other hand was staring at the wall behind Leean's head with great interest._

"_Not boasting dear, simply telling you. Imagine that wonderful body handcuffed to my headboard." Heather said, drawing each word particularly long. _

"_Now why on earth would you employ handcuffs?" Helena asked, more inquisitive about what Heather was describing then the act itself._

"_Touch deprivation. It's fascinating. Imagine you are in the highest point of passion, the point that normally your nails are digging into flesh, kneading it like a warm ball of dough, but you can't touch anything but the headboard if you're lucky. It makes you focus solely on the pleasure you are experiencing, with no other touch input. I think it results in the best orgasms." And with that Heather sealed her win quickly. Not only was Artie a lovely shade of red, a touch of red was coloring Helena's face. Heather smiled and clapped lightly. "I think I win, I have gotten you to blush tonight."_

_Helena flicked her wrist, trying to dismiss the statement that she had lost their game, but her mind was already racing at the thought of using handcuffs in bed._

* * *

"What are you thinking about?" Helena asked sitting down on the other end of the couch, putting Heather's feet in her lap.

"How could you tell I was thinking?" Heather asked, picking up the remote off the table sitting before them.

"You have a look when you are thinking."

"Do I now?" Heather asked teasingly. "You watch me enough to know?"

Helena blushed a little, realizing she had effectively caught herself. Clearing her throat she gestured to the tv. "Are we not supposed to be watching the first Lord of the Rings?"

Heather nodded, making a mental note of the almost confession. Hitting play, she snuggled into the couch, preparing herself for the three hour extended cut.

It didn't take long before Helena had shifted, putting herself between Heather's legs and her head resting on other woman's stomach. Absent mindedly Heather ran her fingers through Helena's silky hair.

Leena walked in, a large bowl of popcorn in hand and caught sight of them on the couch. She handed the bowl to Helena, eyeing Heather for a second. "Heather, can I talk to you?"

Heather turned her head to face the other woman before pushing Helena up a little bit so she could wiggle her way out and place a pillow under Helena's head, who was too caught up in Liv Tyler riding to Frodo's rescue after he had been stabbed by the ghost sword, to notice anything had changed.

The two women walked to the kitchen, the movie still audible, along with Helena's reactions.

"What are you doing?" Leena hissed as soon as they were far enough away that she was sure Helena wouldn't hear.

Heather looked at her, confusion clear on her face. "Well, I was watching a movie with Helena."

"That's not what I meant." Leena said, her hands coming to rub her temples. "I meant, what are doing, being all lovey with her."

"I wasn't…" Heather answered, unsure of herself now.

"You were stroking her hair like I stroke Claudia's when she is curled up next to me."

Heather focused on the past few minutes, trying to filter out the movie, and realized she had indeed been behaving as if she was in love with Helena. But then Helena hadn't protested. She turned to look at Helena from where she stood in the kitchen, and quickly her brain realized what had happened. She had told Helena to find someone else to date besides Myka. They hadn't talked about it, but obviously Helena had listened, and decided she was setting her sights, and her charms, on Heather.

"Shit."

"No kidding." Leena said.

"I can't go move to a different chair when I go back in there. She will notice." Heather murmured to herself.

Leena shrugged. "I don't know what you should do."

Heather sighed, before returning to the couch and taking her position back. If she was going to be honest with herself, and that was something she did try to do, she didn't really want to stop whatever this might turn into.


	6. Chapter 6

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **Six**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, and the plot ruining ones that are hush hush  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors Note: **Sorry it's short guys. I am fighting with the plot bunnies right now, someone let them out of their cage, and this is the best I could do over the past two days.

* * *

"I think it's time we continue that discussion." Heather said, turning the tv off.

"Which discussion love?" Helena asked, shifting so she was sitting up and facing Heather.

"The one where I told you to look at other people for relationships that ended with you laying in my lap for a three hour movie." Heather said bluntly. She was a firm believer in the Band-Aid approach-quick and to the point.

"I am not so dim that I did not notice you came back to allow it." Helena responded.

"Touché."

The silence between stretched into an infinite ocean. Neither woman was prepared to break the silence, afraid that they were misreading each other. Leena padding around in the kitchen, humming some tune that neither woman recognized and the sounds of them shifting uncomfortably on the couch, were the only things to pierce the silence.

Finally Heather broke the silence. "I would be a hypocrite."

"I don't think I understand." Helena answered.

"I mean I would be a hypocrite. I destroyed Zo-" Her throat got tight and the sentence ended, leaving Helena even more confused.

Helena shifted and pulled Heather into a tight hug, trying to console the woman who had been there for her so many times.

Heather took a deep breath, pulling out of the hug and tried to speak again. "I destroyed Zoë's relationship when I found out her psychiatrist was having sex with her."

Helena slipped her hand into Heathers. "It would not be the same. You are not taking advantage of me. I can't imagine you would have said anything if the relationship was healthy."

"I would be a hypocrite. I would be taking advantage of you." Heather responded, pulling her hand away. Helena's touch confused her. Clouded her thoughts with the things she wanted instead of the things she should be doing.

"How would being taking advantage of me? Am I not a mature woman, capable of making her own decisions?" Helena asked, her fingers trailing over her own thighs. She wanted to hold Heather's hand like she wanted air, but obviously Heather wasn't there, and she wasn't going to push it. If there was one thing that Helena was masterful at, it was reading the signs that said stop – after all she had seen them enough, for every woman who said yes, six said no.

"I am your therapist. It's wrong." Heather said, the pain from that sentence visible.

"I will inquire again. Am I not a mature woman capable of making her own decisions of what it right and wrong? Am I not capable of deciding what is taking advantage of me?" Helena asked, irritation tinging her words. If Heather wasn't interested she could handle that. Being told what was good for her that was not something Helena was going to stand for. She had had quiet enough of that when she was forced to move in with her brother to raise her daughter.

"You are but you are missing the point Helena." Heather responded. "I told you that you needed to explore relationships other than Myka, and now you are telling me you want to try with me, and that's complicated."

"What is so complicated about it?"

"It would seem I manipulated you into dating me out of my own loneliness and need to get over Catherine."

"Well did you?" Helena asked.

"I would never do that."

"Then I still fail to see the problem. I am giving you exactly five minutes to make me see this issue you have conjured up before I take this into my own hands." Helena said, authority dripping from her voice. Watching Heather closely, it would have been hard to miss the shiver that ran its way through Heather's body. The shiver that was conjured into existence by Helena's dominate nature coming out.

"I feel like I am trying to explain astrophysics to a brick wall right now." Heather muttered.

"Pardon?"

"Nothing." Heather said.

"Time is ticking." Helena said, watching the clock on the wall. 4 minutes left.

"I have no doubt that you are smart enough to make your own decisions Helena, but I am not a smart decision. I am someone who listens to your problems and makes sure you don't get the inclination to end the world again. That makes for a strange relationship."

"We can be friends yes?" Helena asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Of course."

"Then for a woman who is so liberated, I would venture to say equal to myself if your dinner stories are anything to judge by, I must forgive me for missing how adding sex into the relationship changes anything. Are we not then just friends who share a bed?" Helena responded without missing a beat.

Heather's mouth dropped open. She had been out maneuvered. Heather's thoughts were flying, trying to find a counter, although it was a halfhearted attempt.

"Tick tock love, you are almost out of time." Helena interrupted her frayed thoughts.

"I- uh- um-…" Heather stuttered, trying to by herself time against a clock that was ticking. Every text book she had ever read, every article of psychology, every bit of knowledge she had about people and general was escaping her as she watched Helena mouth, "One." She had one minute to get her shit together and make Helena see her point, and so far it wasn't working out well. Frantically trying to pull out a convincing argument, Heather's mind raced, before it landed on why she told Helena to try other relationships to begin with. "You are treating the sex like it doesn't change anything that is part of the problem I think you have with Myka."

Helena snorted. Not accidently, but honest to god snorted with laughter. "I believe you have gotten me and Myka mixed up love. I treat sex as the moment that bonds you." She shifted her body, her knees resting at Heather's hips as she rested on her heels. "Sex is amazing and joyous, and best enjoyed with someone you care about. I find that person is always a friend. And we have agreed we are friends." She bent down, her cheek flush with Heather's, before whispering. "And I imagine you could teach me a great many things about sex."

Heather shivered, her hands jumping to Helena's hips.

"Your time is up. I just want you to try with me. I am not a petty woman as these women I see on TV are. If it doesn't work out you will not lose my friendship. But for now, I would like to share your bed." And with that Helena drew back before leaning down and pressing her lips against Heathers.


	7. Chapter 7

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **Seven**  
Rating: **M  
**Trigger Warning: **Bondage  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, and the plot ruining ones that are hush hush  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors Note: **So that M rating up there (points to the 3rd line) this is where that like hard core heavy duty comes into play. I am just going to apologize for my shity smut writing skills. Sorry guys. I also reserve the right to make up words when I can't think of better ways to describe something beyond flavor+y.

* * *

Walking backwards up stairs while keeping contact with another person was way harder than Heather remembered it being. They made it half way up the stairs before Heather fell backwards, pulling Helena down on top of her. Laughter bubbled between them, assuring one another that neither had hurt the other. "I suppose I am out of practice." Heather managed to say between bursts of laughter.

"I never had this particular problem honestly." Helena admitted before righting herself and pulling Heather up behind her.

"You lucky woman."

Helena grinned ready to resume to assent, minus the precarious act of Heather walking upstairs backwards. Heather took Helena's hand and raced up the stairs like the teenager she felt like she was, dragging Helena behind her to her room.

Heather was attempting to pull Helena to her bed but she stopped dead, her gaze roaming over the room. "Really Helena! Can you not admire my room after you admire me?"

"I suppose…" She trailed off before meeting Heather at the edge of the bed, pushing her down to sit on the edge of the bed. Helena put her knees at Heather's hips and sat on Heather's lap, stooped slightly to meet Heather's lips with her own. Helena's sweet lips met Heather's cinnamony ones creating a taste that Helena was sure even Leena wouldn't be able to recreate. Each kiss broke with a content sigh that could only last for a moment before one of them would reclaim the other, desperate for the kiss like it was air.

Helena's hands began to roam down Heather's back seeking the hem of her shirt. Finally reaching their destination she pulled, regrettably an action that made them separate while Heather brought her arms up free the shirt. The reward was definitely worth the separation though. Heather's pale skin clashed with her black and purple bra in ways that made Helena want to devour her on the spot instead of slowly savoring her. "I approve immensely." Heather commented before reclaiming Heather's lips, slowly pushing her back so they were laying down instead. Helena's hand that wasn't bracing herself against the bed moved down Heather's front, stopping only to gently squeeze each breast for a moment before continuing down. Fingers trailed over Heather's toned stomach, causing the muscles beneath the skin to jump, before reaching the waist band of her jeans. Jeans that had a button fly. Helena broke the kiss, a sigh of frustration escaping her lips.

Heather's eye brows raised. "What, I didn't think sex was on my menu when I got dressed this morning."

Helena rolled her eyes before helping Heather wiggle backwards a bit so she wouldn't fall off the bed attempting to unbutton the bane of existence. Button by agonizing button, Helena worked her way down, fumbling with the first two momentarily before freeing the remaining ones with ease. After what Helena considered far too much work, she slid back off the bed, pulling the criminalized pants with her and tossing them in a corner, with hopes they would never make a reappearance in her sex life. Victory was clear on her face, and it only intensified as her eyes dragged from Heather's face with swollen lips, a few shades redder then when they began, to the swell of her pale breasts pushing against the black and purple satin material, to the matching underwear resting on her hips. "You are magnificent." Helena whispered, climbing back onto the bed, and effectively Heather. Not above mind games, Helena leaned close and watched Heather rise off the bed to try to meet her lips but at the last minute Helena changed course, instead going off to one side and capturing the lobe of Heather's ear in between her lips. Teeth lightly dragged against the sensitive skin before her tongue rolled over the stud, wiggling the tiny piece of jewelry, rewarding Helena with a moan that had her ear not been right near Heather's mouth she would have missed completely. Satisfied, Helena moved down peppering kisses along Heather's throat before placing a final one in the hallow of her throat before reclaiming her swollen lips.

One kiss bled into another and then another, and Helena realized they were going nowhere quickly, and that was not suitable for her. Slipping her hands behind Heather's back she searched for a bra clasp only to find a solid strip of fabric. Helena pulled back sitting on her haunches, looking at Heather, confusion evident on her face.

Heather giggled a bit before she unhooked her bra from the tiny clasp in the front that was hidden by a purple bow.

In her best imitation of Claudia's "seriously dude?" face, Helena stared at her. "Are there any other tricks to your clothing I should know about?"

Heather shook her head, pulling the bra off and throwing it haphazardly across the room. Reaching up, her hands found Helena's back pulling her down to resume the kiss that had been so rudely interrupted by confusing clothing.

Recapturing Heather's lips, Helena allowed her hand to slip between to capture one nipple and roll it between her fingers before moving to the other, back and forth, eliciting moans from Heather that were swallowed by the kisses. Satisfied with her work she let her hand trail down Heather's body, finding the edge of Heather's panties and gently pulling down until Heather raised her hips just enough that she could easily slide them off. Her hand returned to its previous position, fingers trailing over Heather's body, prepared to pull lightly at the curls, Helena had to pause and reevaluate her whole strategy when she encountered Heather's curl-less mound. Thinking quickly, she let her hand drift pass where Heather wanted her, and instead allowed her fingers to trace patterns on the inside of thighs, alternating back and forth and moving closer and closer with each pass. The sounds coming from Heather when Helena finally pulled away to focus on her new venture could only be described as animalistic. Paired with her hips moving trying oh so desperately to capture the fingers that were so close yet so far away set a fire low Helena's stomach.

Helena's resolve to continue to tease Heather melted and she let her fingers dip between the smooth folds. The wetness that greeted her fingers was enough to reassure Helena that she had teased for far too long. Finding her goal quickly, Helena slipped two fingers in Heather's warm center, positioning her hand so her thumb would hit her clit every time she moved, Helena set to work. Her attempts to set a slow pace were destroyed by the moans echoing in the room every time she curled her fingers and tapped Heather's clit. Every thrust was met equally by Heather, and the moans quickly melted to begging.

"More Helena."

Helena hesitated before feeling nails dig into her back through the shirt she was wearing.

"More Helena!" This time it was less of Heather begging and more of her demanding and hesitantly Helena added a third finger, trying to move slower but finding it difficult with Heather pushing the speed along. "Yes!" Heather hissed, her back arching off the bed as Helena curled her fingers and palm of her hand hit the other woman's clit.

A few more passes and Heather plunged over the edge, Helena's name ripped from her throat as her body pulsed around Helena's fingers, soaking the bed beneath them. Heather sighed contently, finally coming down from her high and looked at Helena who had rolled over to lay beside her.

"How on earth are you still clothed?"

Helena shrugged, or at least as best she could laying down. "I suppose we were both focused on you."

"Well, that simply won't do." Heather said, attempting to roll over to pin Helena to the bed, only to be halted by her muscles protesting. "In like thirty minutes that simply won't do." She amended, sighing.

Helena laughed before leaning over and placing another kiss on the swollen lips. "Would you be incredibly off put by a conversation while you regain your strength?"

Heather shook her head, her hands resting on her stomach.

"Fantastic. I have to wonder, what changed your mind?"

"You beat me at my own game. It is a rare occasion for someone to match me intellectually, and not only did you match me, you beat me. You are also an excellent kisser, and I haven't had sex in…" Helena watched her eyes dart back and forth while she counted the time. "Almost two years."

"I am glad to hear that you have deemed me worthy, and that my kiss still has that power. I was starting to think I had lost my charms." Helena admitted, her hand capturing Heather's to rest on her stomach.

"You stirred feelings I thought I had laid to rest long ago Helena." Heather admitted, her face soft with the afterglow and emotions she was laying on the table.

"All good I hope."

Heather chuckled. "Decidedly good."

They laid in silence, content to be in one another's company, until Heather regained the ability to use her muscles.

Helena was propped up on one of the pillows watching Heather crouch in front of the chest at the foot of the bed. She could hear objects being shuffled around but when Heather stood up, two pairs of hand cuffs dangling off her fingers she wasn't prepared for the surge of heat the settled between her legs. "You are far to dressed." Heather said, latching one end of each pair to the posts of her bed before straddling Helena and making quick work of every bit of clothing she was wearing, leaving an equally as pale Helena laying among the black and red bed. Heather bent down, capturing Helena's lips all the while guiding her hands up so she could lock the hand cuffs in place.

Heather smiled at the surprise on Helena's face once they were in place and she couldn't move her hands. That was something Heather would never tire of, the look of surprise when the person in her bed realized they couldn't touch her. She quickly began peppering kisses along Helena's body, stopping to pull her right nipple in her mouth while she rolled the other between her thumb and forefinger. Helena was pulling at the restraints desperate to touch Heather but unable to, and Heather watched while rolling the nipple between her lips and lightly dragging her teeth over it. She was rewarded with a shudder and a moan that sounded like a plea. Switching her position to give the same treatment to each nipple she felt Helena buck slightly under her, seeking contact from anything but finding nothing. "Please." Helena whined, her muscles in her arms straining.

"We have just begun." Heather responded, moving up to capture Helena's lips again, her tongue asking for entrance, something it was granted almost instantly, but not without a fight for dominance. Heather let her hands wander over Helena's body, teasing while they were caught up in the kiss, only to allow them to stray just far enough that she could tug on the curls Helena had been searching for. Pulling back from the kiss, allowing her teeth to drag along Helena's lower lip, Heather peppered kisses down her body, swirling her tongue in the hollow that was her belly button, before pulling back completely to sit on her heels, observing the sight before her for a moment.

"Please Heather." Helena begged. Her body was on fire, it had been too long since she had the pleasure of a lover and now that one was being attentive to her needs her stamina had been thrown out the window.

Heather nodded slightly before slipping two fingers into Helena, but leaving her clit unattended. Her free hand slipped under Helena's ass, lifting her slightly off to bed and creating an angle so that each thrust of Heather's fingers hit all the spots that made Helena moan. Helena was screaming in pleasure and she could see the edge, but couldn't get close enough to jump into its abyss, and Heather was enjoying every moment of it. Finally deciding that Helena had had enough, Heather bent down, her lips locking around the swollen clit while she tongue teased it. With that Helena screamed Heather's name, her body arching off the bed, capturing Heather's fingers in her body. A moment later she collapsed onto the bed, she body still shaking with the power of the orgasm that ripped through her body. "Amazing." It was the shortest sentence Helena had ever said, but it was as accurate as it was getting.

Heather moved up and undid the handcuffs before slipping the fingers from Helena's body, which was accompanied by a sharp intake of air by the other woman. "You okay?" Heather asked laying down beside her.

Helena nodded. "That was…"

"It tends to be the first time, I told you they are magical to use. Although I was under the impression you had more stamina then that."

"Over a hundred and thirteen years since I last had the pleasure of sex."

"Oh." Heather said quietly, turning on her side to spoon Helena, placing soft caring kisses on her neck.

Helena turned on her side, snuggling into Heather's body, and she slept the best she had in the past two years that night, wrapped in Heather's arms.


	8. Chapter 8

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **Eight**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, and the plot ruining ones that are hush hush  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors note: **Ucky feels chapter ahead. It is awkward and I am sorry. Me and the plot bunnies are going rounds about this chapter and they keep stealing the carrots I normally bribe them with. I am going to be honest, I am not 100% happy with this chapter but I am tried to fighting with it and getting the same results. Hopefully the next one will be better!

* * *

Blinking against the light streaming through the curtains, Helena struggled awake. She would have been perfectly content to stay in the bed sleeping had the intrusive sun not woke her, but she had the unfortunate problem of once she was wake there was no going back to the warm embrace of sleep. Sighing softly she attempted to stretch her stiff body only to be met with resistance in the form of Heather's still sleeping body wrapped around hers. She had long forgotten the dance of trying to get out of bed without disturbing someone else and did a rather poor job of it, waking Heather in the process.

"Leaving me so soon?" Heather asked watching Helena move around the room gathering her clothes.

Helena jumped slightly, dropping all the clothing she had retrieved into a pile at her feet. "Leaving is such a vicious word, I was simply preparing myself to retrieve my morning tea. I really am not a functioning person without it."

"Number one, I don't function well without coffee. Number two that was way too much to say you need tea before I talk to you. Number three, see number two being applied to number one." Heather said before stretching out on the bed, her back arching as joints popped, creating a sight that Helena couldn't help but appreciate.

"No, you stop that. I need my tea before you make me want to ravish you this morning as well." Helena said bending down and getting dressed.

"Oh fine. If you insist." Heather pouted, getting out of bed and pulling on her own clothes.

Fully dressed they made their way to the kitchen, only to find Leena sitting at the table drinking her morning coffee already. "Did you have fun last night ladies?"

Both women smiled sheepishly. "I hope we didn't keep you awake." Heather said pouring her own coffee while Helena moved around to make her tea.

"Would it matter if I told you that you did?"

Heather shook her head. "Not really."

"I didn't think so." Leena said, her attention dropping back to her newspaper.

Heather stifled a laugh before walking out the back door and settling on the swing that she was so affectionate of.

A few moments later Helena joined her, steaming cup of tea in hand. "I think I could get used to quiet mornings such as this." She said sitting down, making Heather shift on the swing.

"It is only quiet because I am still drinking my coffee." Heather responded taking a sip of the bitter liquid.

"That was not me begging you to destroy this." Helena said.

Both women still irritable, settled into silence while rocking back and forth, careful not to spill their drinks. Heather watched Helena out of the corner of her eye, the way her fingers wrapped around the cup so gently but commanding sent shivers down her spine recalling the nights activates. Heather was well aware of what those fingers could do and it was glorious, but behind her fawning thoughts stirred over things that had been said, and more importantly what hadn't been said before they fell into bed.

"What is bothering you love?" Helena had placed her tea on the arm rest when she noticed Heather's brow crinkle, indicating she was thinking hard about something.

"I'm not sure. Perhaps another cup of coffee." Heather said, getting up and disappearing into the house, leaving Helena more than a bit confused.

"Your pondering was over another cup of that vile liquid you call coffee?" Helena asked, picking her own cup back up and watching Heather over the rim as she finished the cup.

In a gesture she had picked up from Helena, Heather tried to wave the statement off with her hand. "No, I was thinking about other things, but I am still unsure if they are just a figment of my under caffeinated brain."

"Stealing my gestures I see." Helena teased before adding, "If that sentence is any indication of the state of your brain, it would seem that it has been thoroughly caffeinated."

Sighing and sitting down Heather's shoulders dropped a bit. "I suppose you are right. We just didn't really talk before we jumped into bed, and then you made off hand comments and now my brain is racing around at a hundred miles per hour."

Helena chuckled a bit wiggling closer to Heather to lean on her. "Well, do you care to share with me what you are so consumed by?"

"Okay, so this one is probably the least important of them all but it's bugging me." Heather said, trying to preface the question so it wouldn't seem so prodding. Helena motioned for her to continue, and taking a deep breath Heather let the question fly. "You said it's been over 113 years, but I thought you and Myka, like a month ago."

Helena nodded, staring into her tea cup. "We did, but I was not graced with the return of the pleasure I granted her."

"Oh." Heather answered. She was trying desperately not to approach that from a therapist point of view but it said a lot about how Myka viewed whatever Helena and she had.

"Next question." Helena asked, jarring Heather from the thoughts that were racing around her head.

"Oh um." Heather stuttered a moment before finding the next point she wanted to talk about. "What happens when Myka comes back?"

Helena sucked in a deep breath and took her time answering. It felt like it took forever, but in actually only minutes had passed but it was making Heather uncomfortable. It was something they should have talked about before they fell into bed together and now she was afraid they had done the deed and Helena would be ready to trade it all in for a shot with Myka.

"She was acting like a child when she left." Helena finally started, her nails clicking against the tea cup – a habit Heather had noticed she does when something bothered her. "I honestly don't know what is going to happen when she comes back." Helena finally admitted.

"Are you going to leave me if she says she wants to try?" Heather asked, her heart in her throat. They were in such a disgusting position because she had allowed herself to behave like a horny teenager – not that wasn't a good description of how she felt since breaking up with Catherine.

"Are you going to despise me if I admit that I would?" Helena asked, giving Heather her answer.

Slowly Heather shook her head. "I understand. To some extent I suppose. I would have to lie to you if I said that didn't hurt a little though."

Helena placed a kiss on Heather's cheek. "I don't want to hurt you, and you have met Myka. Horribly stubborn when she gets an idea in her head, in all likelihood she is going to come back from vacation and tell me to leave her the fuck alone." Heather smiled at the statement, and the sound of the word fuck coming from Helena's mouth.

"But if she doesn't?"

"Then we will figure that out when we get there. I love you Heather, please don't think anything other. I am just unsure if that love is that of friends or of lovers." Helena answered, trying to ease the pain she was sure she caused Heather.

Heather nodded, her eyes glassy as she looked at the trees in the backyard. So many other questions where floating around in her head but they were all whisked away by the thought that her shot at happiness could be ripped away at the whim of Myka's return. She steeled herself so the tears that hovered just at the edge wouldn't spill but her heart hurt and she knew that when push came to shove she was going on the back burner. She couldn't compete with Myka, not really. But she vowed she would at least enjoy whatever time she and Helena had. After all, happiness is a fleeting thing, and even small moments of it would be better than none at all.

* * *

Artie and Pete arrived right as the table for dinner was being set, both sinking into chairs and shoveling food into their mouths like they hadn't eaten in years. Artie only slowed down when he realized Helena and Heather were not taking part in their normal dinner game.

"What's wrong?" He asked gruffly.

No one answered, either lost as to what he meant or faking being oblivious.

"I am only asking one more time. What. Is. Wrong?" Artie wasn't known for is patients and if anyone had ever questioned that fact, it was obvious in this moment that someone better speak.

Leena looked up from the dinner she made and shook her head. "Nothing that I know of." But her eyes betrayed her, darting to look at Heather and Helena who had been quiet since the morning on the porch.

"HG?" Artie asked.

Looking up from the plate that she was just moving food around on instead of eating she raised an eyebrow. "Whatever are you talking about, Artie?"

Mustering his best "don't play stupid" look he stared at her which only encouraged commentary from Pete.

"Oooo, someone's in troooouble."

"Hush Pete." Leena said, guilt crossing her face. She realized she had pointed the finger without meaning to.

"You're no fun, Leena." Pete pouted before returning to the food.

"There is nothing wrong Mr. Neilson." Heather muttered, rather unconvincingly.

"Steve needs to be here." Artie muttered but allowed it to drop for the moment.

Helena gave Heather a sideways glance that screamed everything that needed to be said. They had to get over this or the crap with Myka was just going to be compounded with their crap.

They finished dinner in relative quiet, the sound of their silverware echoing around the room. Helena escaped to her room, muttering something about other things to do, Pete and Artie retired to the living room to watch some football game they had missed, leaving Heather and Leena to do the dishes.

The two women stood beside each other working in a quiet when the front door opened followed by Claudia shouting. "Snagged, bagged and tagged bitches!" Heather saw the conflict play over Leena's face before she told the younger woman to go, she would finish.

Leena smiled a thanks and all but ran to Claudia, almost picking her up in the process of squeezing her close and kissing her.

Heather was drying the last of the dishes when she heard the two women walk into the kitchen, whispering back and forth.

"Heather, dude, did you get Helena to watch _Lord of the Rings_?" Claudia asked breaking away from Leena to bump Heather's hip with her own.

Heather swallowed hard but nodded. "She didn't tell me if she liked it or not." Heather said to the younger woman. "I think she's hiding in her room if you want to go bug her."

Claudia nodded, turning around and placing another kiss on Leena's lips before zipping through the house to go assault Helena with millions of questions about her opinion on _Lord of the Rings_.

"I missed her." Leena admitted, taking her place back to attempt to help finish dishes that were done.

"I understand." Heather said with a tight smile. She wasn't angry at Leena, not really. She was angry that she let herself get into the position she was in.

Leena had started to say something when Heather's phone chirped in her back pocket. Pulling it out she opened the message to see it was from Lindsey.

_Can we talk? Can I call?_

Texting back quickly Heather told her to give her a few minutes.

"Everything okay?" Leena asked.

"I'm not sure. It's Lindsey."

"Have you told Helena about Catherine and Lindsey?" Leena asked, turning the tables on Heather.

She shook her head moving towards the back door.

"You need to Heather. I know you know that too."

Heather nodded before pushing through the back door and walking out to the trees, walking through them until her phone rang.

"Linds, what's wrong?" Heather asked answering.

"Heather." She was sobbing.

"Linds, take a deep breath, honey." Heather listened has the teenager took a deep breath and then a few more. "Okay, now tell me what's wrong?"

"I messed up, Heather. I messed up bad." Lindsey said, her voice shaking.

"I am sure everything will be fine baby." Heather tried to reassure the girl but was worried now.

"Heather, I'm pregnant." Lindsey attempted to say, but it was muddled with her crying.

Heather leaned against a tree. "Have you told your mom yet?"

"No." Was Lindsey's strangled response.

"Oh, Linds. You have to tell her."

"Can you come home so I'm not alone?" Lindsey begged.

"Linds I really can't. What about the dad?"

"I was drunk." Lindsey admitted.

"I will see what I can do." Heather promised before hanging up and sliding down the tree.

She had to figure out whatever she had with Helena and try to be there for Lindsey now. She was quickly buckling under the pressure.

* * *

Helena sat at the foot of Heather's bed, waiting for her to get done in the shower. When the door finally opened she jumped from the bed, waiting expectantly for Heather.

"We need to talk." Heather said, pulling the towel from her hair and throwing it into the pile of dirty clothes that were amassing on her floor.

"Even I know that is never good." Helena said, her hope deflating a little bit.

Heather rubbed her forehead. "No theatrics Helena. I am serious. I need to put all my cards on the table right now. Things have happened and I have to know where we stand before I go to take care of them."

Helena nodded before sitting on the bed leaning against the head board.

"No talking till I am done." Heather made her promise, slipping onto the bed so that she could look at Helena while she talked.

Helena nodded again, displeasure evident on her face at the promise, however.

"I am sure you remember Catherine, she is my ex-girlfriend. Her daughter, Lindsey, called me tonight after dinner while you and Claudia were up here fangirling about _Lord of the Rings_. She's seventeen and apparently she got drunk and had sex and now she's pregnant. Even though me and Catherine have been split up for a while I will still move the world for Lindsey, she's like my daughter. She asked me to fly back to Vegas so she wouldn't have to tell Catherine by herself." Heather explained, trying to watch for Helena's reactions but receiving none. Taking a deep breath, Heather tried to steady herself before she kept going. "I need you to tell me where we stand. I need to know if I am going to come back and have a girlfriend to wrap me in her arms and tell me it's all okay after I have to face the woman who broke my heart for a man, or am I going to come back to nothing? If you don't have any will to try to make this a relationship and Lindsey needs me, I am going to stay in Vegas."

Helena blinked a few times, her face a mask of nothing. "These are heavy demands, Heather."

Heather nodded. "I know, and I am sorry. I am so sorry I am putting this much crap on our, whatever it is, this soon. But like I said, Lindsey might as well be my daughter, I will put her before anything else."

Helena nodded. "Can I answer you in the morning?"

Heather nodded. "That's fair. Are you sleeping in here tonight?"

Helena nodded, pulling the covers back and sliding between them. Heather slipped in beside her and Helena wrapped her arms around Heather while her mind raced all night.

Could she honestly say that she was willing to put Myka completely on the back burner? So much so that she would allow Heather to make a choice based on their relationship. It was a whirlwind, she had wanted to be friends who had sex, but it seemed Heather had other feelings and Helena had no idea how to even start to process them.


	9. Chapter 9

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **Nine**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, so the other pairing shouldn't be plot ruining now but you know incase people are being all "Not reading till you're done" I am still leaving it out *eyeballs a few people*  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors Note:** Since school started updating is going to slow down to like 1-2 chapters a week. Sorry about that guys.

* * *

Helena woke up in the early hours of the morning, stirred by her thoughts, and carefully extracted herself from Heather. She bent down and placed a light kiss to her temple and tucked the blankets in close so the other woman wouldn't get cold before closing the door behind her softly. Doing her best impression of a ninja, she attempted to get down the stairs without stepping on any of the dreadfully creaky stairs that only ever seem to make an appearance when you are trying to sneak around in the middle of the night. Alas she was thwarted two steps from the bottom as she placed her weight on it and a loud creak echoed through the mostly silent house - the only other noises were Pete's snoring and the tick tock of the clock in the living room. Swiftly she moved off the last of the stairs and waited at the foot in case someone had heard and thought they were being robbed. After a few minutes passed she decided she was in the clear and continued her journey to the kitchen in search of a cup of tea that would hopefully calm her nerves enough that she could think through this whole debacle logically.

She was clinking around in the kitchen, trying to be as quiet as one can be when making a fresh cup of tea but when she turned around to claim a seat in the living room she was face to face with Leena who apparently had superior ninja skills.

"What are you doing up, Helena?" The other woman asked, an eye brow raised but sleepiness clear on her face.

"At this very moment, trying not to drop my tea." Helena responded, trying to steady her hand from the shock of the other woman's presence.

Leena shook her head before skirting around the other woman. "Shouldn't you be in bed with your girlfriend?"

"I could say the same to you. I am sure Ms. Donovan misses your warmth." Helena said walking to the couch and wrapping herself in a blanket to sip her tea.

The sounds of Leena moving around in the kitchen accompanied the clock that was informing Helena that it was only just after two in the morning. Helena was half way done with her tea when Leena finally joined her on the couch, a cup of hot chocolate in her hands.

"Seriously Helena, what are you doing up?"

"Thinking." Helena whispered.

"About?"

"Heather and myself. Things have gotten complicated far quicker than I expected. What are you doing up?"

"The baby visions keep coming, much more frequently."

"I believe you owe me a conversation of medical advances." Helena said, a yawn slipping out afterwards. She was exhausted but she had told Heather she would have an answer in the morning.

Leena chuckled a bit. "Yes, I suppose I do. I am surprised Claud hasn't taught you the wonders of the internet and Google."

Helena smiled. "She made a valiant attempt but we arrived at what I believe she called porn and the lesson swiftly ended."

"You would manage to end up at porn on your first excursion into the internet." Leena said shaking her head.

After a brief conversation of what porn was, they turned to the conversation that was promised about medical advances and Helena was thrilled to hear about invetro and the currently experimental procedure of using two eggs to create a child. Shortly after the conversation had halted, Leena was snoring lightly, wedged in the corner of the couch, her head balancing precariously on the back, and Helena was left to face her thoughts alone again.

Left to battle what was she going to do. At the moment she was fond of the idea to let things play out between herself and Heather, but the little voice she tried desperately to silence continued to remind her that Myka would be back soon, and maybe after some space she would have realized that Helena just wanted a relationship with her. And then she thought about what it would be like to have this amazing relationship with Heather. One built not on hidden feelings that were only told because of an artifact, but one that was built out of friendship. One that was inclusive of both of their wants from the beginning, even if Helena had manipulated it a bit. One that involved Lindsey. That stopped Helena dead. Was she ready to be attached to Heather, knowing her love of Lindsey and to some extent, Catherine?

She leaned back, rubbing her head, her eyes finally closing. Her last thought was how she couldn't take Heather from Lindsey.

* * *

Helena was curled up on the couch, sleeping in her respective corner, when Heather came down the stairs, irritation clear on her face. Waking up to an empty bed that was long cold when you had fallen asleep wrapped in a warm embrace was never a good way to start the day, but upon seeing the forgotten, almost empty, tea sitting on the table and Helena's clearly uncomfortable position, most of the irritation evaporated.

She sat between Leena and Helena's feet, tugging the blanket in from the two of them enough that Helena stirred a bit, trying to pull the warmth closer. Heather smiled before leaning over and pushing the hair out of Helena's face. The contact jolted Helena awake, her hand wrapping around Heather's wrist instantly. Sleep clearly clouded her vision as she blinked in quick succession a few times before releasing Heather's wrist.

"Sorry." She said tucking the hair Heather had been attempting to move behind her ears.

"It's okay." Heather said rubbing her wrist. She wasn't angry but that didn't mean Helena's grasp hadn't hurt. "I am more hurt you left me in bed by myself." Heather admitted.

"I'm sorry. I really needed to think about things so I came down here. I must have woken Leena when I stepped on that bloody creaky step at the bottom of the stairs." Helena said, before lifting Heather's hand to her lips and to kiss the wrist that was already starting to bruise a bit from her grasp.

"So did you think then?"

Helena nodded before placing a few more tender kisses to the bruise that was forming. "I did."

"And what did you decide?" Heather asked, her heart pounding.

"I can't take you from Lindsey." She shifted so that she was straddling Heather's lap and leaned forward and tucked the wavy red hair behind the other woman's ear. "I want to have a relationship with you Heather, but not at the expense of that little girl."

Heather's hands rested on Helena's hips, her eyes brimming up with tears she refused to shed. The universe loved to put her between a rock and a hard place, but this was the first time that it hurt so much. "Well, she is seventeen. Not so little." Heather said, her voice shaky.

"But she needs you Heather. You said you think of her as your daughter, what kind of lover would I be if I did not put her needs first?" Helena said, placing a kiss on Heather's forehead.

"I want you to be selfish right now." Heather admitted, the tears starting to spill over. Two days. She managed to bask in the warmth of love for a spectacular two days before the universe said no to her happiness.

"Please don't cry love." Helena said, her thumb sweeping away the tears. "I want to be selfish too, but I can't bring myself to stand in the way of the relationship you have with Lindsey."

Heather leaned forward, her arms wrapping around Helena's body as she buried her face in the other woman's chest, sobbing without restraint now.

Helena stroked her hair, keeping her own emotions in check. Glancing over at Leena she saw the other woman appeared to have been awake for most of the conversation and her sympathy for their situation was clear.

Leena removed herself after Helena saw her, slipping up the stairs to reclaim her place in bed beside Claudia.

"I want you to be selfish." Heather kept declaring like a mantra into Helena's chest.

"I know, sweetie, I know." Helena repeated each time, alternating from stroking her long hair and rubbing circles into the taller woman's back.

* * *

Helena sat on the bed, her legs crossed, watching Heather move about the room.

"Did you tell Lindsey you are flying in tonight?" She asked.

Heather nodded, wiping the stray tear away. "She was really excited."

Helena nodded, falling back into silence. It was tense and it hurt, but both women were beyond exhausted after dealing with their emotions. Well, dealing with Heather's emotions, Helena's had been locked away tight in the same way they were locked away when she pretended to be noble for Myka with the Janus coin.

Finally Heather stopped moving, dropping a duffle bag that was almost over flowing with clothes and other things she deemed necessary on the floor in front of where Helena was sitting. "I really don't want to do this."

"You need to be there for her." Helena answered.

"I am going to miss you."

"You will be back before you know it. Who knows, things might even still work out." Helena said half-heartedly. Her heart of hearts knew the truth, she wasn't getting on the plane with Heather now, and when Heather came back they would just be friends.

"I don't believe you for a second." Heather responded, sitting on the bed across from Helena.

"Take care of Lindsey first, then we will worry about us. We should leave or you are going to miss your flight."

Heather nodded, pushing herself off the bed she had just sat down on. She knew Helena was just trying to distance herself, but that knowledge didn't do much to quell the feelings of hurt that were welling up inside of her that instead of sharing a few more moments, Helena was urging her to go.

* * *

Helena returned from dropping Heather off at the airport right before dinner but instead of claiming her spot at the dinner table she withdrew to her own room. Stripping down to just her cami and underwear as soon as she closed the door, she felt the tears she had fought with all day well up. Sliding into the bed and pulling a pillow close to her chest to bury her face in, the dam broke and tears flooded her face. Strangled sobs escaped her mouth, muffled by the pillow as her body shook with the tears. If this is what it meant to be in a relationship, to be so fully committed to someone, she wasn't sure she ever wanted this again. It had only been two days but she felt like someone had reached in and pulled her heart out and stuck it on the plane with Heather. What would it be like in a relationship that lasted longer? Would she be able to handle it? What if Myka came back and said yes, she wanted to try but a year from now decided she was unhappy? Helena wondered if she would be able to live through that heartbreak. Was it worth it?


	10. Chapter 10

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **10**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, so the other pairing shouldn't be plot ruining now but you know incase people are being all "Not reading till you're done" I am still leaving it out *eyeballs a few people*  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors Note:** Long chapter ahead, at least long for me. Lots of fun plot points happening here, hopefully I have managed to appease everyone in the process.

* * *

Muddling through the emotions the next day, Helena realized she wasn't happy with her choices, to which the snarky part of her brain threw up a sign saying "You don't say". She had told Heather it was just sex added to their friendship, right? Groaning she fell back on the bed, her hair poofing out in a fan over her pillow. Sleep had done wonders to clear her mind from the emotional fog, but even in the light of a new day and wielding logic as her weapon it was still like fighting a battle up hill in the snow.

Sighing and rubbing the palms of her hands into her eyes until little stars danced around in the blackness, Helena let her thoughts run rampant. She had lied, oh how she had lied. It was so much more than just sex. Her heart had ached for Heather in the same ways it ached for Myka, and when she finally realized the existence of those feelings, her heart was having none of games that happened with Myka. And if she was honest, letting her heart take the reins led her down a path were she lied to Heather, lied about wanting a relationship with her. But Heather seemed fine with returning the feelings, as long as it was a solid relationship, cementing Helena into her choice. Right up until Lindsey called. Then more lies poured from her mouth like a river, that she would be fine with Heather going, lie; that it was for Lindsey that she was willing to give up, partial truths laced with lies; that she wanted Heather to leave earlier, lie. Lie after lie in her attempt to be noble for Heather and in part for Lindsey, someone she didn't even know. She was willing to put everything on hold for Lindsey, because if Christina was alive and needed her she would expect the same from Heather, but it hurt. But then the logical side tried to argue that Lindsey wasn't the same as Christina, not really. Lindsey was Catherine's daughter, why was she letting her come between her and Heather? Because Heather wanted to be there for Lindsey. Because Heather, despite whatever hurt Catherine had caused, would still move heaven and earth for Lindsey. But Helena wasn't ready to give up, not really. She looked at the cell phone charging on the night stand and her fingers itched to pick it up and call Heather. To tell her that she had made a mistake. That she wanted to go to Vegas with her, or that she wanted Heather to come back as soon as she could, regardless of what Lindsey needed. But she didn't. Instead she stared at the phone like it was a vicious dog that was going to bite if she moved until her eyes closed again.

* * *

The clock hanging on the opposite wall let her know it was early in the afternoon when she finally woke up again, but the waking up was not by choice. Something had stirred her from sleep but looking around and listening she couldn't figure it out.

That was until a fist pounded on her door followed by Claudia informing her, "Dude, you have till I count to 10 before I pick this lock to make sure you're not dead."

"I'm very much alive Ms. Donovan." Helena said, sliding out of the bed and pulling a robe on that was hanging on the back of her door. She opened the door and was almost pushed to the floor when Claudia pushed in. "Yes, please come in Ms. Donovan. And I know I have informed you many times, but I am not a "dude"."

Claudia rolled her eyes. "Whatever. You are really okay?" She said, grabbing Helena's arms and spinning her around.

"Well, I was until you did that. Now I fear I may be ill from sudden motion." Helena said, stumbling to her bed to sit down. "Why the concern?"

"No one's seen you since Heather left two days ago. We were starting to worry." Claudia said, bouncing as she sat down on the bed.

"Two days ago?" Helena asked. That couldn't be right.

Claudia nodded. "Yea, don't you remember?"

"I suppose I have slept for the past two days then." Helena muttered, her thoughts vocalized.

"Heather is coming back right?"

"I was under the impression that you didn't care for her." Helena said, her eye brows raised.

"It's really nothing against Heather. Shrinks just give me the hebejevies. You spend some much time being told your crazy when you're not and that job title strikes a not fun note." Claudia explained, before bouncing off the bed and pulling Helena up. "Get dressed. We are going to go have fun times and stuff."

Helena laughed before complying with Claudia's demands.

Walking down the stairs she was met with not only Claudia dressed and bouncing around, but with Steve, Leena, and Pete all waiting for her. Apparently they were going to have a happy intervention, they decided she couldn't be sad anymore. And really, Pete being on board with that wasn't surprising, given last time she was upset he got a broken nose.

Operation Make Helena Happy was in full effect.

* * *

Laser tag was Helena's new favorite activity.

However, Claudia's car was firmly going on the never again list. The two hour drive to the next big city normally didn't bother her, but in Claudia's tiny Prius, unbearable was just starting to scratch the surface of how Helena felt about it. Even with Steve volunteering to sit in the back instead of Pete, they were still so close that Helena was all but sitting in the poor man's lap on the drive.

Hiding behind a barricade, her back pressed to it as she watched the others move around she almost felt bad for the younger kids they were playing against. They never stood a chance against them, but they did give a good fight and she was slightly out of breath. Sneaking around the corner she picked off two of the kids from the other team, leaving only one of them against their four. Glancing around quickly she caught sight of Claudia and Steve on the other side of the room from her, hiding behind something that looked a bit like a crater. Helena snuck over to them, watching for the last opponent.

"Have you seen the last child?" She asked, making sure to keep her voice low.

Both of them shook their head before they heard Pete yelling.

They all quickly ran towards the sound only to realize it was shouts of victory. Pete was standing in front of the last person from the other team, a teenage girl who when she pulled her vest off revealed a t-shirt from a boot camp for young kids who wanted to get in shape to join the FBI. Pete shook her hand before everyone else followed suit, congratulating her on lasting so long. Helena turned around to make sure everyone was leaving before she shut the door only to see Claudia talking to the young girl, probably creating a file on her already for Warehouse 13 generation 2. Looking up Claudia caught sight of Helena waiting with the door propped open, letting the intense white light spill into the darker room. Both younger women jogged over to meet Helena.

"This is Anisa Belova." Claudia said, ushering the younger girl through the door.

"Pleasure to meet you Anisa. You played a bloody good game." Helena said shaking the young girl's hand.

"Thank you, I was surprised I lasted so long against you. It was obvious a few minutes in you are all trained officers of some sort." Anisa said as they joined Pete and Steve at the front desk turning over their equipment. "I was actually about to go hit the paintball field, you guys game."

Pete turned to Helena and Claudia, puppy dog eyes full on. "Please Claud! Paintball is awesome!"

Claudia caved almost as soon as Pete started begging and they followed Anisa to the paintball field.

Helena did not like paintball, because paintball hurt.

Trekking up the hill to sit next to Steve to watch the other three finish the game she cringed with every step.

"You didn't last long." She said, finally sitting down in the dirt next to him.

"You know, paintball just really isn't my thing." Steve said, watching as Claudia and Anisa moved back to back across the field, taking out anyone who dared show their face.

"I venture to say it is not my thing either." Helena said, rubbing the spot on her thigh where someone had shot her.

"They seem to be good at it though."

Helena nodded in agreement. "How many rounds did Claudia say we were doing?"

Steve sighed. "Three more, the last one she said has alternate rules. Basically you go until you surrender after being hit."

"Sounds…lovely." Helena replied, her words dripping with sarcasm that she was sure Steve shared.

Laser tag she could get behind, paintball, not so much.

* * *

Opening the front door to the B and B, Helena all bet fell across the threshold. The last round of paintball had been brutal. She was sure both of her thighs were bruised and most of her stomach was as well, but if she was in bad shape Claudia and Pete were worse. Steve had bowed up of the last round after taking one shot, and as such he was the only one not groaning in agony as they walked up the front stairs and into the living room.

Hearing the commotion Leena appeared from the kitchen to look at the bruised and battered group. "Did you all have fun at least?"

Everyone nodded, one of the few actions they could do without pain.

"That's good. Who's the worst?"

"Claudia." Helena answered, gingerly sitting in the chair that was normally reserved for Artie, but at this moment she didn't really care.

Leena helped Claudia up the stairs and to the bathroom, starting a hot bath for her to soak in, while the rest of them nursed their wounds with simply not moving.

Helena was starting to drift off in the chair when Leena came down the stairs, trusting a phone into her hands. "It's Heather, she doesn't sound good."

Helena pushed herself up from the chair to find something that resembled privacy as she pushed the phone to her ear.

"Heather?"

"Helena." Her voice sighed into the phone.

"Is everything okay?" Helena asked, sitting down at the small kitchen table, unwilling to walk any further.

"No, not really." Heather answered. Helena could hear her shifting on the other end, as if this conversation physically made her uncomfortable.

"Tell me what's wrong."

"How would I get clearance to bring Lindsey to Univille?" Heather asked.

"I… I don't know. I can ask Leena when she comes back downstairs. Heather, why do you need to bring Lindsey here?" Helena asked, worry tinging her voice.

"Things didn't go well Helena, and I really don't want to talk about."

"Okay." Helena said reluctantly before covering the mouth piece of the phone to yell for Leena.

The other woman appeared a few moments later, panting lightly from all the running up and down the stairs.

"Heather needs to ask you a question." Helena said, handing her back the phone.

Helena listened to Heather's muffled explanation before Leena said she would set it up.

Before she knew it the phone was back in her hand.

"Can you pick us up at the airport tomorrow?"

Helena nodded before realizing Heather couldn't see her. "Yea, sure."

"Thanks, I'll see you tomorrow."

Then the phone line went dead.

* * *

Helena sat on the hard plastic chair waiting for Heather and Lindsey the following day, her brain racing. Should she confess everything she had thought about? About how in love she was with her? Would it matter? She was so lost in her own thoughts she didn't realize their plane had landed until Heather was pulling her into a tight hug.

Helena smiled, her arms wrapping around Heather, but not so tightly that her fresh bruises made contact. Heather pulled back after a moment and Helena couldn't stop the gasp that escaped her when she saw the hints of bruise peeking out from under the make-up Heather had on. "Heather, what happened?" Concern for Heather erased any thought of confessing her lies right this moment. That could wait until everything else was settled.

"Lou happened." She answered disgusted. Turning around she pulled Lindsey closer to her before introducing her to Helena.

Helena shook her hand, taking in her thin stature and bright blonde hair. She truly was her mother's daughter, almost an exact clone of Catherine. "Pleasure to meet you Lindsey."

"Thanks." She murmured.

For looking like her mother, Helena thought, the girl didn't act like Catherine in the slightest. Catherine oozed this presence of everyone else will kiss my ass and be happy about it, but Lindsey was the exact opposite.

"Let's get you two home." Helena said, slipping her hand into Heather's free one.

It didn't take them long walking before Heather realized Helena was limping. "What happened to you?"

"Paintball." Helena answered bitterly.

"I like paintball." Lindsey murmured again.

"Well darling, you are a better person than I. I despise the sport currently." Helena responded, a smile on her face, but with the pain from walking it looked more like a grimace.

They were almost out the door when familiar curly chestnut hair passed in front of them before turning around and looking at them.

Myka.

So much for everything else getting settled.

They stared at each other for a moment before Myka broke the silence. "Helena, Heather." Helena watched her eyes drop down to where their hands were interlocked.

"Welcome back Myka." Helena answered before moving around her. She wasn't ready to handle Myka right now, especially not with an audience.

* * *

She helped Heather and Lindsey settle into the hotel room they were going to stay in until more permanent arrangements could be made for Lindsey. Lindsey insisted she could stay by herself and Helena was inclined to agree, but Heather wanted to stay with her for at least the first few nights. Which left Helena going back to the B and B to face Myka with no resolution on what she and Heather were doing.

She slammed her hand on the steering wheel when the car stopped in the drive way of the B and B, behind Myka's. Forcing herself to get out of the car and deal with the mess that was her current relationship status like the woman she was, was the hardest thing she had done that day.

She made it to the living room before Myka made an appearance.

"Are you and Heather dating?"

Helena looked at her wide eyed. Whatever Myka had done while she was on vacation was either a very good thing or a very bad thing, only time would tell. "I don't know what we are doing." Helena answered honestly.

Myka nodded slowly. "I'm sorry." She finally said, sitting down.

Helena paused before sitting down across from her. "For what?"

"For everything and nothing." Myka answered cryptically.

"You're going to have to do better than that Myka."

"For telling you the truth because of that artifact. For getting mad at Heather, it wasn't her fault. For backing away at high speed from whatever we had. For everything and nothing. I don't regret anything, including my pulling away. I needed to find me."

Helena raised an eye brow. "Does this mean you are ready to have an adult conversation about this?"

Myka nodded. "I need to have one."

Helena nodded, pondering how she was going to phrase her next sentence without erasing whatever progress Myka had made. "I love you and Heather equally."

The look of shock on Myka's face said she did not succeed on her attempt.

"Helena, I can't handle this." Myka finally said.

"I'm not asking you to. I am telling you, my heart aches for both of you, in ways that keep me up at night worrying about little things that shouldn't matter."

Myka closed her eyes tightly, her body shaking with each breath. "Are you proposing a poly relationship?"

Helena tilted her head to the side. "I fear I am lost by modern terminology again."

"A relationship between 3 or more people."

"Is that a thing?" Helena asked.

Myka nodded slowly. "Not a popular thing, but a thing."

Helena worried her lip for a moment. "Not at this moment, no. But you have given me something to think about. I would appreciate it if you would entertain the thought of at least befriending Heather."

"I'll think about it." Myka answered before getting up, her head was swimming with this. It had taken the whole time she was on vacation to come to terms with the fact that she was madly in love with Helena, and now Helena was trying to add another complexity to their relationship. One that involved Heather.

* * *

A few days passed without anyone talking about anything even remotely related to what Helena had suggested to Myka, and Myka wasn't egger to bring it up.

Thankfully Artie had decided that they were fit to work back in the warehouse, although both women were limited to inventory for the time being. Doing inventory was a fantastic device to avoid someone, and when Helena got her assignment for the comic aisle, much to Claudia and Pete's dismay, she slinked away before she could hear where Myka was being assigned.

They didn't see each other until they broke for lunch, or rather until Helena broke for lunch. It would appear that Myka had been stuck in the office with Heather all day. When she closed the door behind her both women looked at her. "Fascinating spots on the floor ladies?" Helena asked, realizing the likelihood of them talking without her to mediate was low.

"Amazing." "Superb." Both women answered at once, watching Heather move to grab her lunch from the mini fridge.

Sitting down she watched them fidget around each other before she decided enough was enough. "For the love of all that is holy, please speak to each other." Helena said before diving into her lunch.

"She wants a poly relationship with both of us!" Myka blurted right as Claudia and Pete walked through the door.

Helena sighed. Of course that is what Myka would start with. Of-fucking-course.

"I never explicitly said such." Helena said, watching Claudia and Pete do a fantastic fish out of water impression and Heather trying to juggle this information.

"I-uhm-er, we're going to go." Claudia said, pushing Pete out the door and closing it firmly behind her.

"Is this something you want Helena?" Heather asked, confusion evident on her face.

"I don't bloody know anymore! You gave me shite advice to find other relationships, well now I feel the same way for you as I do for Myka, how the bloody hell am I supposed to deal with that." Helena exclaimed.

And then silence. Heather and Myka stared at her, while she picked at her sandwich.

Heather sighed. "I care about you too."

Myka nodded. "It took me a long time to realize it, but I care about you too."

"Then what do we do?" Helena asked, looking up at the two women who had claimed her heart without them realizing it.

Heather and Myka both pulled their lips into their mouths, worrying them while they thought.

Heather finally broke the silence. "I think Myka and myself need to try to be friends first before any choices are made."

Myka nodded. "I am just going to voice now, the idea of a poly relationship, it's not something I am 100 percent comfortable with."

"I am sure I could change your mind." Heather teased.

"Yea, no. Slow down there Casanova." Myka responded.

Heather smiled and mock saluted.

The mock salute, the same thing Helena had done when they first worked together. "Great, you two are two peas in a pod." She muttered.


	11. Chapter 11

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **11**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, so the other pairing shouldn't be plot ruining now but you know incase people are being all "Not reading till you're done" I am still leaving it out *eyeballs a few people*  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.  
**Authors Note:** First, I am sorry this took so dreadfully long. I had a minor crisis with where I was going to go with this god damn story, and then that lead to well how the hell do I do without spending 20 chapters on plot point A. The result is this. So my warning on this one is there is a lot of time jumping about to happen. Strap in guys, the time machine is going into overdrive. I know this isn't the best thing I have ever written, but it's one of those ucky setup chapters.

* * *

If Heather and Myka had hopped Helena would be around to help them form something close to a friendship the fates had other plans. The following day Helena left to go help Mrs. Frederic deal with something from Warehouse 12 with no return date attached.

One week turned into a month, a month turned into two, and before the two women knew it they had formed a pretty solid friendship that consisted mainly of poking fun at the little things Helena did to bother each of them.

The reagents gave Heather permission to move Lindsey into the B and B but not before Catherine called begging Heather to send her home, apparently after two months of Lindsey not being around she couldn't handle it. As much as it pained Heather she had to put Lindsey on the plane back home because she was under 18 and they both knew if Catherine wanted to she could file kidnapping charges against Heather. And when Heather got home, Myka was waiting to comfort her.

Myka pulled her onto the couch and wrapped her a warm hug. Tears fell off of Heather's face, dampening Myka's shirt while she rocked gently and rubbed small circles on Heather's back.

"She's going home to her mom right? Why are you so upset?" Myka finally asked, her fingers passing over the curve of Heather's face to push back her hair.

"I don't want her to get hurt, and with Lou there that is almost a guarantee." Heather confessed.

"I am sure he can't be that bad." Myka tried to reassure her but failed horribly.

"He hit me when I went to go get Lindsey."

"Oh." Myka responded.

"Yea." Heather snuggled in closer to Myka, grateful for the comforting.

"Everything will work out." Myka said, her hand that had stilled, falling back into the pattern of rubbing small circles on Heather's back.

When Claudia and Leena came back from their lunch date, they found the two still on the couch, only Myka was reading a book while her free hand continued to rub circles while Heather slept on her.

"Is she okay?" Leena whispered as to not wake Heather.

Myka nodded. "Just worried about Lindsey."

Leena nodded in understanding before grabbing Claudia's hand and dragging her into the kitchen.

"I wanted to ask you something." Leena admitted, her arms circling around Claudia.

"What?" Claudia asked, worry tinting her voice.

"Heather asked me a while ago if we would consider adopting Lindsey's baby. There is no way she can take care of it and I want children."

Claudia took a huge gulp of air at the implied question.

"You don't need to answer me now Claud, I just want you to think about it. With Lindsey moving back home though, it is something we need to put in motion." Leena said before placing a light kiss on Claudia's lips.

Claudia nodded her understanding before collapsing into one of the kitchen chairs. "This is big."

Leena nodded, while she pulled the other chair around so that she could sit in front of Claudia. Sitting down, her hands snaked out and grasped Claudia's, creating a bridge across the space between them.

"But you want this? You want to raise a baby? Our baby?" Claudia asked, her voice shaking.

Leena nodded. "I've thought about it since Heather asked almost a month ago. I want this Claudia. I want to be your wife. I want us to have the kids and the dog. I want us to have everything." She admitted, hope brimming in her eyes.

"Well we already have the dog." Claudia joked, even if Trailer was really Arties, everyone looked after the dog.

Leena smiled, laughter escaping as well. "I will be happy to start with being your wife though."

"Was there ever a question if I would want you to be my wife?" Claudia teased before shifting to straddle Leena's lap, her hands tangling in the curly dark hair while she pressed kisses onto Leena's lips.

"You'll think about the baby?" Leena asked when they finally separated.

Claudia nodded. "I'll totally think about it."

Leena smiled, whispering "Good," before reclaiming Claudia's lips.

* * *

Two more weeks passed and still they hadn't heard from Helena, and Myka and Heather were both going crazy. Myka was still stuck on inventory duty and the task that drove her crazy anyway, only seemed worse knowing that Helena was out there doing something. Heather was stuck in the B and B with Leena most the day, and while that wasn't a bad thing, she was sure if she ate one more chocolate chip cookie she was going to have to buy a new wardrobe. She was also quickly running out of TV that she was interested in watching, letting boredom set it, and boredom was not a feeling Heather was fond of.

Myka was lying in bed after dinner, her eyes darting over the words in _The Time Machine_ without really reading them, when her bedroom door opened. The lack of knock let her know that it was Heather, as she was the only person brazen enough to just enter without a knock.

"Can I sleep with you?" Heather asked.

Myka physically recoiled before shutting the book and putting her attention on Heather. "Something wrong?"

Heather shook her head. "I am tired of sleeping in my bed alone, I just want to hold someone." Heather admitted, looking down at the floor as if she was ashamed to be so vulnerable.

Myka nodded in understanding, while her bed being empty was partially her own fault for being so foolish with Helena, it didn't take the sting of sleeping alone after having someone to share the bed with. "Nothing funny."

Heather gave her mock salute before slipping between the sheets to lay beside Myka. Myka slipped further down, thankful that Heather was wearing a long t-shirt to sleep in, before tucking herself behind Heather and draping an arm over her side.

"Thanks." Heather whispered once Myka turned off the light behind her.

"You're welcome." Myka whispered back.


	12. Chapter 12

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **12**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, so the other pairing shouldn't be plot ruining now but you know incase people are being all "Not reading till you're done" I am still leaving it out *eyeballs a few people*  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.

* * *

Myka and Heather sat drinking their coffee without speaking to each other, the sounds of the others moving around the backdrop to their tense morning coffee. They sat are opposite ends of the table, placing as much space between them as possible. Neither one was aware who made that decision but it had been made. It was nagging at Myka and she was about to say something when Claudia came flying down the stairs, tailed by Pete, in a whirlwind that could only be created by the two of them this early in the morning.

"Give it back Claud!" Pete whined, his hands wrapped around the back of Myka's chair, tethering him behind her so he wouldn't slip and fall while running around on the wood floor in socks.

Standing behind Heather, Claudia shook her head, bouncing from foot to foot. "Nah. I think I am going to hold on to this."

Myka and Heather mirrored each other, one eye brow raised in question.

"Come on Claud." Pete begged. Myka thought it was almost pathetic how he begged her like a child to give it back, they were so much like brother and sister sometimes that she wondered often if Pete was not her actual brother instead of Joshua.

"Nah." Claudia said before sticking her tongue out at Pete.

"What on Earth did you take?" Heather asked turning around in the chair. She was intrigued and anyone in the room could see it. Including Pete who knew he was never going to win now. Claudia and Heather formed this odd relationship, and Myka could best categorize it as a hero worship esque, almost in the same way that Claudia looked up to Helena, and with that knowledge, everyone knew Heather would be privy to whatever Claudia had stolen in a matter of moments.

But that didn't keep Pete from trying. Although it was a weak attempt if Myka ever heard one.

"Don't you dare." He threated Claudia from where he was standing behind Myka.

Claudia stuck her tongue out and handed Heather the picture she was holding.

Myka watched Heather adjust in the chair, her face unreadable, as she looked at the picture. "Oh, bravo Pete, who is this fine woman?"

Myka turned around and looked at Pete. "What woman?"

Pete sighed and dragged his hand over his face. "She's no one."

"The fact that I am holding a picture of her in Xena cosplay, well what I assume was at one point a full set of Xena cosplay…" Heather said tilting the picture a bit. "Yes, she seems to be missing a few bits of the outfit, although I suppose that those pieces would have been detrimental to being tied to a bed and being pleased, suggests she is someone."

Myka's eyes got wide. "Pete?" His name dragged out of her mouth in a way that is distinctly Myka, the way she would say it when he had done something she disproved of or something she couldn't believe.

Pete had the good sense to look ashamed that he kept something from Myka that was important. "I met her when me and Claud went to Xena con to get Lucy Lawless's original costume."

Heather looked up for a moment before interjecting, "Claud and I."

Pete looked at her and rolled his eyes before turning back to Myka.

"So that's where you disappeared to!" Claudia all but shouted at the sudden revelation. She leaned over Heather and took the picture back. "She was the one who helped us at the display booth."

Pete nodded, his hand rubbing the back of his head. It was obvious that he was embarrassed that there was a picture for Claudia to steal at all, but even more so that Claudia had brought it down stairs and let Heather get her hands on it.

Myka finally gave up any pretense of true disbelief and stood up and pulled him into a hug. When they separated she was smiling when she punched him the shoulder. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Hey, ow!" Pete cried, his hand rubbing his shoulder. "I don't know, why didn't you tell me you were shagging HG?"

Everyone stopped, including Pete, upon the words settling in the room. It was an unwritten rule, no one talked about the start of whatever relationship Myka tentatively had with HG and Heather. For the most part everyone followed the rule, but occasionally slip ups happened, but normally not when Myka was the other person in the conversation.

"Myks, I didn't…" Pete started to try to apologize, but truthfully he didn't even know what he was apologizing for. It wasn't like Myka had asked for it not to be talked about, they just all made a decision that it wouldn't be talked about and no one questioned it.

Myka smiled trying to reassure Pete that he hadn't done anything, but it didn't quiet reach her eyes. "It's fine guys. I am just going to go take a walk." She said before disappearing out the kitchen door. Everyone sat completely still while they listened to her footsteps dashing down the wood stairs outside.

Once everyone was sure she was out of hearing distance both Heather and Claudia turned to look at Pete, their faces a mix of anger, pity, and concern. "Was that really the best response you could come up with Pete?" Heather almost spat at him. "We are still on shaky ground as it is and I am sure you saying that just erased the past 3 months of whatever we had going on!" By the end her voice had risen high enough that she was almost sure that Myka could hear her, regardless of how far away from the house she was.

And Myka did, she was passing the first row of trees in the backyard when she heard Heather yelling at Pete, and she cringed. It had taken two months for Heather and herself to fall into something remotely close to a friendship, but Helena had been taken away before she could work anything out between them, leaving this gap in their relationship. A relationship that she only cared about because Helena asked her to care about it, at least that's what she told herself. But it was a lie. A lie she told herself so she could still judge this idea that Helena had about a poly relationship. She was genuinely starting to enjoy Heather's company, and that scared her. She wanted to spend time with Heather now. She wanted to see her smiling, laughing, and just generally being happy. She cared about Heather in ways two months ago she would have never thought possible, and being honest with herself, she enjoyed sleeping next to her the night before.

That thought stopped her dead in her tracks. She was in the middle of the orchard and she spun around, as if checking to make sure no one could hear her thoughts. Assured that she was alone and no one had overheard her thoughts, she found the nearest tree and sank to the ground, her head dropping to her hands. That was a scary realization for her. She had fallen so quickly for Heather that she wasn't sure what to really think about the idea anymore. Heather really was so similar to Helena at times that had they not looked so starkly different, Myka was sure she would have confused them for each other on more than one occasion, but at the same time she was distinctly her own person.

That thought lead to Helena, and how much she missed her. She had made the choice to push her away for over a month before just leaving all together to get her head on straight, and then when she finally came back with her head clear and decisions made, fate slapped her on the back and said good try kiddo, but things are never going to be that easy.

Figuring out how to handle a relationship with Heather and Helena was daunting, but when she thought Helena would be around to help with the process it didn't feel nearly as bad. Then before Myka could even sit down and have a good conversation with Helena about everything that happened, from her being a cold bitch to leaving all together, to coming back, Helena was torn away. Warm tears were slipping down her face now, thoughts of how badly she had fucked it up between her and Helena. How quickly Helena was willing to give her another chance. How quickly she pretended like nothing ever happened if it meant they could at the very least be friends. They needed to have that conversation but it didn't seem like she was going to get the chance to see Helena, or hell even talk to her anytime soon. No matter how she felt about Heather, until that conversation was had, until all the dirty laundry was aired, the scabs ripped off and healed into silvery white scar tissue, it would all be for naught. Helena forgave her blindly, but she wanted to remove the wraps from her eyes and make her see, make her understand everything. Without that it didn't matter how much _she_ loved Helena, or how quickly she was falling in love with Heather, it would never work unless they were completely honest with each other.

She lost track of the time sitting under the tree, still in sweat pants and a tank top from when she got up, but when she saw Heather searching for her in between the trees, fully dressed, she knew that she had been gone long enough to form at least something that resembled a search party.

Straining her hearing, she heard Heather calling out her name loud enough to let her know she was close but not so loud that she would startle her if she was in deep thought. Quickly Myka pushed any remaining tears away from her face, angry that they had fallen at all, before standing up. "Over here." She called out.

Heather turned around and caught sight of Myka, and the smile that blossomed over her face to replace the hard look of concentration and concern made Myka smile back. It felt like no time passed before Heather was wrapping her in a warm hug, one hand stroking her hair. "You're okay." She was whispering, so low that Myka almost didn't hear it.

"I just went for a walk Heather." Myka said when they separated. Myka was torn; the obvious need to protect her was cute and infuriating all at the same time.

"I was worried." Heather mumbled, "You were gone for two hours. The last person to leave this house on a walk after something like this I found sleeping in a field by the side of the road."

Myka hung her head in shame, she had all but forgotten that night and it didn't occur to her how it must seem to Heather. "I promise, I am not going to storm off and sleep in a field for a night. I just needed time. Although it wasn't very productive I must say." Myka answered, slipping her hand into Heather's as they walked back to the house.

Heather smiled broadly when her hand wrapped around Myka's. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Myka shrugged. "I don't know if it would help."

"Talking about it always helps." Heather declared. "We will have a girl's day, lay on my bed with way to much popcorn watching stupid chick flicks and talking."

Myka snorted a bit before she realized that Heather was serious. "I don't really do those."

"Well it is high time you start."

Myka rolled her eyes but knew better than to argue. One of the traits that Heather possessed that reminded her most of Helena was once a decision was made nothing short of a zombie apocalypse would stop that decision, and she sometimes wondered if a zombie apocalypse would be enough.

Before she knew it, she was sitting on Heather's bed, a ridiculously large bowl of popcorn sitting in her lap; while Heather put in some chick flick she was positive she would fall asleep on. She wasn't opposed to them really; she just would rather watch a good action or mystery film. Chick flicks just seemed so self-indulgent and never in a good way.

"I am about to start your education in amazing lesbian films." Heather declared claiming her spot next to Myka before hitting play.

"Really? That's not even funny." Myka commented upon seeing the title, _I Can't Think Straight._ "Did they just throw in the towel when the decided to name this?"

Heather rolled her eyes. "Don't over think it Myka, it's a fluffy movie of fluff. You are probably going to get cavities from how wonderfully sweet this is."

Myka huffed before making herself comfortable enough that if she fell asleep she wouldn't end up with a crick in her neck. As a result she ended up curled close to Heather, with her head resting on Heather's shoulder.

When she was still awake half way through the movie she was rather impressed with herself. Despite the horrid title, the movie was holding her interest and she was desperately rooting for the two women, hoping beyond hope that everything would work out.

Watching Leyla come out to her mom struck home with Myka though. She shifted uncomfortably on the bed as she watch her try to explain to her mother that she would never be happy with a man, and it was like a boulder dropped in her stomach. What would her parents think? They had been so fond of Sam and her mother had gotten used to the idea of another set of grand babies someday, what would they think when she came home for a holiday with not one but two women. It had scared her enough when it was just the thought of bringing Helena home to meet her parents; it had scared her so badly that she pushed away. The thought of trying to explain both of them to her parents made her go cold with fear, but the movie wasn't willing to let her suffer in feelings for too long. She couldn't contain the snort of amusement when Leyla's father came home and asked what was going on and Leyla responded with I'm gay, prompting the response of, "but I've only been gone two hours".

"See I told you, it's a good movie." Heather teased.

"Shush."

Heather giggled before putting her arm around Myka, making her resettle so that her head was resting on Heather's breasts, while Heather played with the ends of her hair that rested on her back.

They spent the rest of the movie like that, until the very end when Myka clapped with excitement that everything worked out.

Heather smiled, "I am glad you liked it." She said before moving out of the bed to change movies. "So, we can either watch another movie, although I will have to admit this one is way less fluffy, or we can talk and then watch. The choice is yours."

"I told you I didn't really want to talk about it Heather." Myka said, defenses slamming into place. Talking to Heather would be an exercise in futility. She wasn't the person who the conversations really needed to happen with.

"I am not stupid Myka, and it hurts that you seem to think I am. I saw how you tensed up during both scenes where they came out to their parents. You need to talk about shit."

"Fine, you want to talk. Let's talk." Myka said in a huff. "Let's talk about how I was so terrified of dealing with myself that I pushed away the woman who I was madly in love with for months. Let's talk about how I spent almost a month at home with my parents, and not once did they ask why I suddenly showed up for an unplanned visit, because I never do anything unplanned. Let's talk about how that whole time I had effectively separated myself from anyone who might understand what was going on in my head, so I dealt with it all by myself. Let's talk about how when I finally thought I had my shit together, I came home to apologize only to find you had taken my place. Let's talk about how I have somehow fallen madly in love with you, despite how crazy you drive me on any given day. Let's talk about how I have trouble sleeping at night when I know Helena is out there somewhere doing god knows what. Let's talk about how last night was the best I have slept since Helena left. Let's talk about how awkward family dinner is going to be at Christmas when I have to being home not one girlfriend but two. Let's talk about how I think I love both of you and I have no idea how to handle it." By the end she was sobbing uncontrollably and Heather had moved onto the bed to hold her while she cried.

"Shh, it's okay Myka." Heather murmured, rocking slightly with the other woman all but curled up in her lap. "We will figure everything out, and it will be fine."


	13. Chapter 13

**Title: **Three Words that Halted the World  
**Chapter: **13**  
Rating: **M  
**Pairings: **Bering and Wells, Cleena, HG/Heather, HG/Heather/Myka  
**Summary: **Set in The Path We Walk verse (Warehouse 13 with CSI), Heather has become a H.G.'s permanent therapist and one of her closest friends. Naturally, after the dust settles from artifact induced confessions of love, there are things to worked out, namely, are Myka and H.G. actually dating, or was it all just the fault of the artifact, and if they are what does that mean for them?  
**Disclaimer: **All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended. All use of preexisting characters are covered under the Fair Use bit of copyright.

* * *

Heather held Myka tightly as the last of her tears fell, carving painful lines down her face.

"I'm scared," Myka whispered, "I don't know how to handle any of this."

"We will talk through it. Everything will be fine." Heather promised.

Myka nodded, holding Heather close to her. She trusted her completely, if Heather said they would figure everything out, they would figure it out. The only thing that was missing was Helena, if Helena could be home and helping figure everything out, Myka was sure she would feel better but she knew she couldn't pull Helena away.

"I am ready when you are Myka, no pressure." Heather left it open so that Myka could start the conversation and now feel like she was being pressured.

"I don't know where to start." Myka admitted, pushing the remaining tears away from her face angrily as she moved away from Heather. When she settled they were facing each other on the bed, enough space between them that they would have to make an effort to be close.

"Let's start easy. Why did you sleep so well last night?"

Myka shrugged at first but a quick glance in Heather's direction made it clear that wasn't going to fly. The other woman wore her emotions on her face when she chose, and she had chosen to show her complete disbelief in Myka's non-answer.

"Because I felt safe with you there." Myka admitted, a blush creeping up her neck.

"Why does that bother you?" Heather asked, keeping tight control on her voice as to not betray how hurt she felt.

"Because I love Helena, I am not supposed to feel safe with another person in my bed." She answered, throwing her hands up at the end to punctuate just how irritated she was with everything.

"Do you not believe you can love us both?" Heather asked, terrified of the answer. If she said yes, it meant amazing things, but if she said no, it would destroy her.

"I don't know. I didn't think so, but you drive me crazy in the best way and you know what I need even when I don't. How can I not love you?"

Heather smiled and laughed quickly. "I know, I am so devastatingly charming, how could you not be smitten with me."

"God you are so much like Helena." Myka sighed, her fingers going to rub her temples. "How am I ever going to be able to juggle both of you?"

"I have a few ideas." Heather responded with a smirk. "But I thought we were supposed to be focusing on the questions that made you cry for an hour in my arms."

"Like how my family didn't even realize something was wrong?" Myka asked, her eyes was shiny with new tears that were begging to spill over. "How am I supposed to even start to explain to them all of this?"

Heather pulled herself deep in thought, these questions stumped her. She had no relationship with her parents and she had always been open, maybe a bit to open with Zoë. How do you deal with telling your parents that you are not only bisexual but that you are in a relationship with two women? "I suggest you start easy. Casually mention to them that you are seeing a woman, either Helena or me, although I feel you would prefer to introduce them to Helena first. Then we can always introduce me later, or never. That's up to you." It hurt to say, but Heather was willing to be the non-existent girlfriend if it meant Myka would feel safe in their relationship.

Myka surprised her though and shook her head. "I could never… I could never be in a relationship and keep you hidden but let Helena be open. Or vice versa."

"You need your family though." Heather urged, not so much out of wanting to be hidden, but testing how strong Myka's resolve was.

"I…" She shrugged ending her sentence with just as much uncertainty as she felt. "I do, but I love Helena with every bit of my being, and I am dangerously close to being just as in love with you."

"I don't think I have the answer for this one Myka. I think only you do." Heather said, leaning forward to tuck loose hair behind the other woman's ear. "I don't want you to do anything you aren't ready for. Helena and I have a very free view on relationships. You come from such a different view point and I know we are asking you to shift to ours quiet suddenly."

"You both don't have any family to answer to either." Myka said, flopping back on the bed.

"You're right. We are both relatively free of the need to explain our actions to anyone." Heather agreed, shifting to lay down next to Myka. "But, you are an adult Myka. At some point you have to do what feels right. And right now, this feels right to me." Heather said before shifting slightly and capturing Myka's lips with her own.

When she pulled back Myka was licked her lower lip slowly and dragged her teeth over it. "It felt pretty right to me too."

Heather smiled and leaned in again, shifting to straddle Myka's hips, pressing hard into the kiss. Myka's hands pressed into Heather's back, fingers kneading muscles with soft pressure. When they broke this time Myka was smirking.

"We aren't doing much talking."

"Well, kisses seem to be making you happier. Everything will work out Myka. I know you like planning everything, but just let this happen. Let yourself be in love with me. And with Helena. Let us just be in love, everything else will fall into place." Heather promised before bending over again, capturing Myka's lips and rolling her hips to grind slightly against her leg.

Myka gave in, trying her hardest to stop thinking and just be. Heather's kisses were so much different that Helena's but equally as amazing, all dominate, daring Myka to try to take control, but honestly Myka didn't want to. Being in control meant thinking, and right now she just wanted to exist, content to be ravished by Heather.

"You promise?" Myka asked when the broke apart.

Heather nodded. "It might hurt, but then if something is worth it, it generally does hurt."

Myka took a deep breath. "I am willing to try. But take things slow. I don't just jump into bed with people."

Heather nodded. "Oh, but the things we could do." She promised, capturing Myka's lips one last time, before rolling off of her. "Does this mean I get to sleep with you every night now?"

Myka rolled her eyes. "Yea I guess it does. You mentioned something about more movies?"

Heather nodded, rolling off the bed to go put on another movie.

* * *

At some point they fell asleep on the movie, Heather holding onto Myka protectively. They both woke up to the sound of a heavy knock on Heather's door followed by Artie informing them that Mrs. Frederic requested their presence down stairs.

They struggled out bed, fighting sleep tooth and nail, but when they got down stairs, falling into chairs rather spectacularly, the haze of sleep did nothing to shield them from the news.

"Agent Bering, Ms. Kessler." Mrs. Frederic said, acknowledging them both before taking a seat in front of them. "Agent Wells has been injured on assignment."

Myka shot up, her stomach rolling with fear, tears already breaking through her normally stoic behavior. "Is she okay? Where is she? When I can see her?" All the questions left her mouth is a rush.

Heather grabbed Myka's hand tightly, trying to keep the other woman grounded through the grief, while her own insides turned like the sea.

"She's in a private hospital right now. She should be out of surgery soon." Mrs. Frederic answered. "I will let you know when you can see her."

Heather pulled Myka into her lap, holding her while she shook with fear, all the while Heather was trying to keep it together too.


End file.
